Try This at Home
Plan a nice little surprise. If you’d like to read more about this suggestion, I write about it in my book Happier at Home. I mentioned that back in episode 16, we talked about the Try-This-at-Home to “Imitate a spiritual master.” My spiritual master is St. Therese of Lisieux, and her haunting memoir is Story of a Soul. St. Therese observes, “It isn’t enough to love; we must prove it.” I also mention the wonderful books of Shaun Tan, especially Tales from Outer Suburbia.
Happiness Hack
In response to our question in episode 173, many listeners sent many suggestions about how (safely) to take notes while listening to a podcast.
I tried these myself, and my favorite is to say, “Hey Siri, in an hour remind me to XYZ.” Turns out that for me, that works very well.
Happiness Stumbling Block
Sometimes, we get the very strong urge to clear clutter—not from the true desire for outer order, but from the desire to delay work on some unpleasant task. That’s procrasticlearing!
I write about this phenomenon in my upcoming book, Outer Order, Inner Calm. We’ve all done it. Remember, working is one of the most dangerous forms of procrastination!
Gretchen’s Demerit: When I’m annoyed at someone, instead of taking action or putting things in perspective, I brood on it with a kind of perverse pleasure. Which isn’t constructive.
Elizabeth’s Gold Star: She gives Jack a gold star for deciding to be more adventurous during their recent family trip to Hawaii.
Resources
- Speaking of “nice little surprises,” if you’d like a nice little surprise from me in the form of a free page from my coloring book, download it here.