In general, religious people seem to be happier than non-religious people - under various definitions of "religiosity," such as church attendance or professed spiritual beliefs. Gretchen Rubin More Quotes by Gretchen Rubin More Quotes From Gretchen Rubin If I pretend to myself that I'm different from the way I truly am, I'm going to make choices that won't make me happy. Gretchen Rubin differentchoicesway Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I fail, but every day is a clean slate and a fresh opportunity. Gretchen Rubin succeedopportunitysometimes Happiness comes not from having more, not from having less, but from wanting what you have. Gretchen Rubin You really have to begin by figuring out what kind of person you are. The tip is to really take a look at yourself. Gretchen Rubin look-at-yourselfkindlooks Negative emotions like loneliness, envy, and guilt have an important role to play in a happy life; they’re big, flashing signs that something needs to change. Gretchen Rubin lonelinessplayhappy-life Focus Not on Having Less or Having More, But on Wanting What You Have. Gretchen Rubin focus Focus not on doing less or doing more but on doing what you value. Gretchen Rubin valuesfocus Self-knowledge makes me happy. Gretchen Rubin self-knowledgemake-me-happyself It's about living in the moment and appreciating the smallest things. Surrounding yourself with the things that inspire you and letting go of the obsessions that want to take over your mind. It is a daily struggle sometimes and hard work but happiness begins with your own attitude and how you look at the world. Gretchen Rubin struggleletting-goattitude Turns out that people who try new things, go new places, learn new skills, etc. are happier. This can be tough, because novelty and challenge also bring frustration and irritation - but if you can push through that, novelty and challenge can bring enormous happiness rewards. Gretchen Rubin irritationfrustrationskills When I thought about why I was sometimes reluctant to push myself, I realized that it was because I was afraid of failure - but in order to have more success, I needed to be willing to accept more failure. Gretchen Rubin acceptingsometimesorder Think about what kind of person you are and shape your habits, and your happiness, to show what's true about you instead of thinking that you can just import the right answer from the outside. Gretchen Rubin shapesanswersthinking One of the best ways to make yourself happy in the present is to recall happy times from the past. Photos are a great memory-prompt, and because we tend to take photos of happy occasions, they weight our memories to the good. Gretchen Rubin happy-timesmemoriespast One of the best ways to make yourself happy is to make other people happy. One of the best ways to make other people happy is to be happy yourself. Gretchen Rubin mmahappinesspeople Habits are the invisible architecture of everyday life. Gretchen Rubin invisiblearchitectureeveryday I'm doing a lot of speaking and talking about habits, which is this subject that obsesses me. That's a lot of fun. Gretchen Rubin habitfuntalking Never start a sentence with the words 'No offense. Gretchen Rubin tactoffensesentences I am living my real life, this is it. Now is now, and if I waited to be happier, waited to have fun, waited to do the things that I know I ought to do, I might never get the chance. Gretchen Rubin realfunmight September is the other January. Gretchen Rubin januaryseptember Your unhappiness doesn't help anyone else - and in fact, as I mentioned in another answer, happy people are more altruistically inclined. So happiness is not a selfish goal. Gretchen Rubin selfishgoalpeople
