Chanting, Kissing, and Reading.

From time to time, I post short interviews with interesting people about their insights on happiness. During my research, 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 feel a bond with writer Amy Ferris because we both had our big happiness realizations while driving – well, she was driving on Route 80, and I was riding the cross-town bus on 79th Street, but that's...