I’m very excited to announce the second episode of the new weekly podcast, “Happier with Gretchen Rubin.”

One thing that makes this podcast especially fun is that I’m doing it with my sister the sage, Elizabeth Craft.

So what will you hear us discuss, when you listen to “Happier with Gretchen Rubin“? We talk about how to build happier habits into everyday life, as we draw from cutting-edge science, ancient wisdom, lessons from pop culture—and our own experiences (and mistakes).

Each week, we give  a “Try This at Home” suggestion, for some easy habit you can try, as part of your ordinary routine, to boost your happiness—something like setting an alarm to signal your bedtime, or using the one-minute rule, to help yourself stay on top of small nagging tasks.

We also suggest questions to help you “Know Yourself Better”—like “Whom do you envy?” and “Are you a Marathoner or a Sprinter in your work style?”—and explore “Happiness Stumbling Blocks,” those small, seemingly insignificant parts of daily life that drag us down—everything from the problem of the Evil Donut-Bringer to the fact that working is one of the most dangerous forms of procrastination.

We “Grill the Guest,” consider “Listener Questions,” and finally, we get even more personal, and each of us either gives ourselves a “Demerit” for a mistake we made that week, that affected our happiness, or awards a “Gold Star” to someone or something that deserves recognition.

We’re sisters, so we don’t let each other get away with much!

Here’s what we discuss in this episode:

Try This at Home

Set an alarm to help yourself get to bed on time.

Know Yourself Better

Are you an “abstainer” or a “moderator” when it comes to resisting a strong temptation? (Spoiler alert, I’m a 100% abstainer.) Not sure? Take this quiz.

The quotation I mention, from eighteenth-century essayist Samuel Johnson, is when a young friend urged him “to take a little wine,” Dr. Johnson explained, “I can’t drink a little, child; therefore I never touch it.Abstinence is as easy to me, as temperance would be difficult.”

Listener Question

‘What was your biggest misconception about happiness before you wrote your first book about it?”

Demerit

Elizabeth admits that she should’ve re-scheduled an important school interview, because her husband was recovering from the flu — but she didn’t, because she so badly wanted to cross the interview off the to-do list.

Gold Star

I give a gold star to our mother, for her idea about the email “updates” that my mother, father, Elizabeth and I now send to each other. Our motto: It’s okay to be boring!