We can accept ourselves and also expect more from ourselves.
In my work, I investigate unexpected truths about everyday life—and identify ways we can take happiness from the transcendent to the concrete.
“Every man makes his own summer.”
ROBERTSON DAVIES
DESIGN YOUR SUMMER
How to Design Your Summer
Summer passes faster than you expect. Here’s how to design yours with intention—a theme, a list, a focus, and room for play.
DESIGN YOUR SUMMER
Design Your Summer with the Happier™ App
The Happier™ app offers a variety of tools that make designing your summer practical, fun, and concrete. If you’re not sure where to start, choose a prompt that resonates with you and build from there.
DESIGN YOUR SUMMER
Ep. 587: Design your summer! We share our plans
Gretchen and Elizabeth share their “Design Your Summer” plans—an annual tradition on the Happier with Gretchen Rubin podcast.
"One of the best ways to make yourself happy is to make others happy. One of the best ways to make others happy is to be happy yourself."
GRETCHEN RUBIN
HAPPINESS
Gifts for the class of 2026
Choosing a graduation gift is a small, happy problem to have. Here are Gretchen’s favorite picks for the grad in your life.
HAPPINESS
Finding fun in unexpected places
In a new Substack series, Gretchen explores how self-knowledge can help us identify the activities we truly enjoy, beginning with her lifelong love of children’s literature.
HAPPINESS
A gift for someone worth celebrating
The “I Want You to Know” Journal helps you put your feelings into words. The prompts walk you through your favorite memories and the things you’ve always wanted to say, and turn them into a keepsake for someone important in your life.
"Outer order can contribute to inner calm."
GRETCHEN RUBIN
ORGANIZATION
48 hours to make a messy small home clean and organized
Gretchen teamed up with Clutterbug to completely transform a small New York City apartment—creating outer order that’s designed to last.
ORGANIZATION
Why getting organized feels better than a vacation
New research reveals the surprisingly powerful connection between organization, mood, and everyday happiness.
ORGANIZATION
How to get started on spring cleaning
Use the shift into spring to reset your space with clutter-clearing ideas that are simple, practical, and even a little fun.
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Understand yourself and others with Gretchen Rubin’s personality framework.
ABOUT GRETCHEN
About Gretchen
Hi, I’m Gretchen Rubin. For more than a decade, I’ve been studying human nature—the science of the soul. My happiness project is to understand myself, the people around me, and how we can move from good intentions to concrete actions to build happier lives.