Gretchen Rubin's Blog, page 269

"We Are What We Repeatedly Do..."

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."

--Aristotle

* If you're starting a happiness project, you might like to use the Happiness Project Toolbox -- a companion site that offers eight free tools to track resolutions, keep an inspiration board, keep a one-sentence journal, record your Secrets of Adulthood, etc. It's a lot of fun.

Take a Day Off.

I'm working on my Happiness Project, and you could have one, too! Everyone's project will look different, but it's the rare person who can't benefit. Join in -- no need to catch up, just jump in right now. Each Friday's post will help you think about your own happiness

For resolutions to be effective, you need to keep those resolutions. I use my Resolutions Chart to hold myself accountable (if you want to see my chart, for inspiration, email me at gretchenrubin1 [at:] gmail...

Happiness Is…A Great Book Event in Seattle.

I really enjoyed my visit to Seattle. This was the one city on the tour that I'd never visited before, and although I was there just one day, I was lucky enough to get a gorgeous view of Mount Rainier. That evening, I had a great time talking to Warren Etheredge at the event organized by Kim Ricketts.

Of course, a highlight of my Seattle visit was finding out that The Happiness Project hit #1 on the New York Times list! Zoikes! I'll never forget that hotel room, that's for sure.

The book...

Newsflash!! #1 New York Times Bestseller! Yes, #1!

I'm flabbergasted. I'm ecstatic!

The Happiness Project is a #1 New York Times bestseller (list appears February 7, 2010)!

Thank you, my dear readers, for everything you've done to help support the book. This is one of the very happiest moments of my professional life.

Twelve Tips for Reading More.

Every Wednesday is Tip Day.

Of my hundreds of happiness-project resolutions, one of my very favorite resolutions is to Read more.

Reading is an essential part of my work. It forms an important part to my social life. And far more important, reading is my favorite thing to do, by a long shot. I'm not a well-rounded person.

But reading takes time, and there aren't many days when I can read as much as I'd like. Here are some strategies I use to help me...

Happiness Is…A Great Book Event in Los Angeles (Actually, Pasadena) and Berkeley.

I had a great time at the book event at the Vroman's in Pasadena on Monday night -- it was particularly fun to have my sister and her husband and friends in the audience. Sarah Fain of Sarah Fain Has Starfish Envy fame was there, as well as the fabulous Colleen Wainwright, a/k/a The Communicatrix.

My visit to the Bay area last night was also terrific. I went straight from the airport to Mountain View to visit Google, where I got to see an old friend (who is also a brilliant writer and...

Seth Godin: "You Can Become the Indispensable Linchpin."

I've admired Seth Godin for a long time – I read his wildly popular and influential blog as well as his bestselling books. My favorite book is probably Tribes, which has influenced my thinking quite a bit. Seth is known as a marketing guru, but he doesn't talk simply about how to market a product, but how people can lead and spread their ideas.

Recently I went to hear him speak to the Digital Publishing Group (now The Publishing Point), where he gave a...

"Middlemarch, Improvisation, and a Little Bit Married."

From time to time, I post short interviews with interesting people about their insights on happiness. During my study of happiness, I've noticed that I often learn more from one person's highly idiosyncratic experiences than I do from sources that detail universal principles or cite up-to-date studies. I'm much more likely to be convinced to try a piece of advice urged by a specific person who tells me that it worked for him or her, than by any other kind of argument.

I can't remember how I...

"Everything That Irritates Us About Others..."

"Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves."

-- Carl Jung

* A thoughtful reader sent me the link to the site It Made My Day. Lots of fun.

* I send out short monthly newsletters that highlight the best of the previous month's posts to about 33,000 subscribers. If you'd like to sign up, click here or email me at gretchenrubin1 [at:] gmail.com (don't forget the "1"). Just write "newsletter" in the subject line. It's free.

Happiness Is…A Great Book Event in Denver.

For the sixth stop on my book tour for The Happiness Project, I was thrilled to get the chance to visit the legendary Denver bookstore, The Tattered Cover – and it didn't disappoint. A book-lover's paradise. The event there was lots of fun, with especially interesting questions from the audience.

Now, off to L.A. and a bit of a break. I get to spend the weekend with my sister and brother-in-law and meet my new baby nephew! I can't wait. I'm speaking at Vroman's in Pasadena on Monday if...