The Happiness Project (Revised Edition): Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun Paperback – December 29, 2015

Yes, I'm four years behind on finding this book, but I'm so glad that I finally caught up!I don't think this book needs a synopsis at this point - at 780 reviews and counting, it's been done. I'll just cover what I enjoyed about it.I think what makes Rubin's writing so appealing is that she admits that she isn't perfect; she's not afraid to show her ugly side instead of painting a picture of sunshine and rainbows. I really identified with her when she spoke about wishing she would like something because others did. I have often wished I:•Was a morning person•Could be the person who picks out her outfits the night before•Could be the person who picks out her outfits for the week on Sundays and prepared them•Wrapped gifts beautifully•Could drive without ever getting upset with another driver•Save money•Enjoyed volunteering•Cared if my bag matched my shoes•Enjoyed going to see rock bands•Enjoyed making my own smoothies everyday•Enjoyed the raw food dietBut I'm not any of those things. I have accepted that I will likely always be a night person, that I made the right decision to sell my Vitamix (after only using it a handful of times over 2 years), and that I would rather donate money then have to show up at a place at an assigned time to volunteer. This is who I am, and that's okay - the world needs me and the world needs the person who is all of the things I'm not.Favorite moments from the book:•What you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while.•You don't have to be good at everything.•With extrinsic motivation, people act to win external rewards or avoid external punishments; with intrinsic motivation, people act for their own satisfaction. Studies show that if you reward people for doing an activity, they often stop doing it for fun; being paid turns it into "work."•The repetitive activity of walking, studies who, triggers the body's relaxation response and so helps reduce stress; at the same time, even a quick ten-minute walk provides an immediate energy boost and improves mood - in fact, exercises is an effective way to snap out of a funk.•Also, having few clothing choices made me feel happier. Although people believe they like to have lots of choice, in fact, having too many choices can be discouraging. Instead of making people feel more satisfied, a wide range of options can paralyze them.•I'd been self-righteously telling myself that I did certain chores or made certain efforts "for Jamie" or "for the team." Though this sounded generous, it led to a bad result, because I sulked when Jamie didn't appreciate my efforts. Instead, I started to tell myself, "I'm doing this for myself. This is what I want."•Perhaps because men have this low standard for what qualifies as intimacy, both men and women find relationships with women to be more enjoyable than those with men. In fact, for both men and women, the most reliable predictor of not being lonely is the amount of contact with women. Time spent with men doesn't make a difference.•Learning that men and women both turn to women for understanding showed me that Jamie wasn't ignoring me out of lack of interest or affection; he just wasn't good at giving that kind of support.•I've never forgotten something I read in college, by Pierre Reverdy: "There is no love; there are only proofs of love." Whatever love I might feel in my heart, others will see only my actions.•"Feeling right" is about living the life that's right for you - in occupation, location, marital status, and so on.•When thinking about happiness in marriage, you may have an almost irresistible impulse to focus on your spouse, to emphasize how he or she should change in order to boost your happiness. But the fact is, you can't change anyone but yourself.•"Between the ages of twenty and forty we are engaged in the process of discovering who we are, which involves learning the difference between accidental limitations which it is our duty to outgrow and the necessary limitations of our nature beyond which we cannot trespass with impunity." (Auden)•Studies show that people tend to persevere longer with problems they've been told are difficult as opposed to easy.•In fact, researchers reported that out of fifteen daily activities, they found only one during which people were happier alone rather than with other people - and that was praying.•Studies show that because of this psychological phenomenon, people unintentionally transfer to me the traits I ascribe to other people. So if I tell Jean that Pat is arrogant, unconsciously Jean associates that quality with me...What I say about other people sticks to me - even when I talk to someone who already knows me.•I'd noticed idly that a lot of people use the term "goal" instead of "resolution," and one day in December, it struck me that the difference was in fact significant. You hit a goal, you keep a resolution.Needless to say, I identified with a lot of what she wrote. I loved the book. Rubin also has a website where you can download examples of her resolution charts.Highly recommend.

I liked the well researched material. I also found the technique driven qualities of the book. She spent a lot of time documenting reader feedback, maybe too much.That's about it.

In this book, Gretchen Rubin documents her year-long quest to figure out what steps one can take to increase happiness. Rubin's journey is very personal, thoroughly researched, fun, easy-to-read yet full of challenges. I delighted in learning about Rubin's process. Likewise, I am thoroughly amazed by the amount of energy Rubin put into this project and her seemingly unlimited appetite for knowledge. The basic premise is simple - -- "To thine own self be true" (or in Rubin's case, "Be Gretchen"). Rather than over-simplify and deal in generalities, Rubin outlines very concrete and specific steps that one can take to be more happy, some ("pursue a passion", "laugh out loud") more obvious than others ("buy some happiness", "read memoirs of catastrophe").What I particularly liked:-The book is well-researched -- there are plenty of references to classical and not-so-classical literature, quotations from the world's great thinkers, masterful interweaving of literature into the text, and a superb list of books for further reading. (This may be part of the author's need for "legitimacy" -- as if references St. Therese and Boethius let us know that even though she is writing on the seemingly-light topic of happiness, she is an educated scholar at heart.)-It's very personal -- Rubin discusses her sister's diagnosis of diabetes, her husband's hepatitis C, her father's perhaps-feigned delight over take-out pizza for dinner, the ruby slippers and cows on her wedding invitations, her struggle with spending money to purchase nice roller-ball ink pens (when free ball points labeled with drug names are readily available). Rubin discusses her need for approval, her pursuit of "legitimacy" and gold stars, her preference for children's literature. She talks of her personal successes and "failures" (disappointment in the sales of one of her books), her particular passion for white v-neck tee shirts. Rubin shares more personal information with her readers that I share with people I consider close friends.-It's conversational -- When reading this, I could imagine sitting in the living room with Rubin, drinking diet Cokes and discussing the pressing issues of the day -- why it's important for adults to read D. H. Barrie, the joy of a nicely bound set of books, the delight of a new pen. Although Rubin is obviously well-read and superbly-educated, her writing is conversational and very accessible; she delights in sharing what she's learned rather than showing us how dang smart she is.Overall, this was one of the most delightful books I've read in a long time, providing plenty of food for thought. Highly recommended.

A wonderful book! Not that much new information but has a few interesting points to make you think. It’s really well written and i especially appreciate the language it’s written it.

When I made the effort to reach out for them, I found that the ruby slippers had been on my feet all along; the bluebird was singing outside my kitchen window. This final quote from the book speaks to me that happiness is already in life, just need to fine tune my habits, thoughts and behaviour to enjoy it.

I started with the free sample because I should admit I’ve read many reviews criticizing the author for not having a difficult life (so how can she ever discover / develop her path for happiness right???). But I found an inspiring book that would fit most people on how to live the life you actually want to live (notice I didn’t say happier). Also I love the mundane references and everyday’s ups and downs, that help to understand the hypothesis, habits and clues better. Fully recommended.

Arrivato il giorno seguente all'ordine!!! Adoro Amazon. Il libro è impeccabile, oltre che interessantissimo per via dell'argomento trattato, in un modo speciale dalla autrice best-selling.

I have no idea how to properly convey how I feel about this book. I felt so much for it and because of it and it's kind of crazy. I saw so much of myself in the author and some of the examples she explained, half the time I was sitting there dumbstruck. She breaks down her resolutions in such a way it's very easy to follow along and she is so specific in how they work out you really can't ask for much more.Rubin writes in a way that it was very easy for me to relate to and understand. It's a real achievement how much research she did and how many information she is easily able to get across to the reader. Just her Happiness Project in general was a large undertaking but it seemed like so much fun as well. I actually feel happier just having read it and also trying out and noticing little things here and there about myself. This is a book that I think will stay with me forever and one that's definitely worth a yearly read, I can not stop talking about it. I would consider it a must read for just about anyone. I found myself only reading a bit a day so I could draw it out longer, I didn't want it to end.It's funny that I've reacted to The Happiness Project so strongly too because originally it just sounded like a cute and fun memoir which is something I love to read, but it was so so much more than that. You might think with it being a bit of a self help book that it could get preachy or be filled with boring clinical talk or charts and graphs but it's nothing at all like that. It's someone sharing their wonderful experience with great insight that is very easy to transfer to your own life.The Happiness Project is an achievement by the author and I would strongly suggest this book to everyone.