The Happiness Project – Can it Improve Your Life?

By Amanda Pendolino on January 8th, 2010

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Gretchen Rubin was editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Review. She clerked for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. She’s a wife and a mother, and has published books. She lives in a nice part of Manhattan. But she wanted more.

According to The Huffington Post, Gretchen’s new book, The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun, chronicles the year she spent seeking out a happier, more fulfilling life. On the first page, she explains why she went on her journey: “The days are long, but the years are short. Time is passing, and I’m not focusing enough on the things that really matter.” She was concerned that she ”was in danger of wasting my life.”

Here were her basic goals:

Be Gretchen.
Let it go.
Act the way I want to feel.
Do it now.
Be polite and be fair.
Enjoy the process.
Spend out.
Identify the problem.
Lighten up.
Do what ought to be done.
No calculation.
There is only love.

Gretchen also gave herself specific goals for each month, like boosting energy and remembering love. And she says that eight hours of sleep is a must (I agree!). I don’t think Gretchen has really uncovered anything earth-shattering here, but I think the simplicity makes sense. It’s not about making huge changes in your life, it’s about changing the way you look at your life.

Here’s to starting my own Happiness Project!