We can accept ourselves and also expect more from ourselves.
In my work, I investigate unexpected truths about everyday life—and identify ways we can take happiness from the transcendent to the concrete.
INTRODUCING
The Happiness Helpline
Ask Gretchen’s new Happiness Helpline your questions about happiness and habits to get tailored answers based on her work.
HAPPINESS
Finding fun in unexpected places
In a new Substack series, Gretchen explores how self-knowledge can help us identify the activities we truly enjoy, beginning with her lifelong love of children’s literature.
GIFT-GIVING
Gifts for the class of 2026
Choosing a graduation gift is a small, happy problem to have. Here are Gretchen’s favorite picks for the grad in your life.
ORGANIZATION
Why getting organized feels better than a vacation
New research reveals the surprisingly powerful connection between organization, mood, and everyday happiness.
"Outer order can contribute to inner calm."
GRETCHEN RUBIN
ORGANIZATION
48 hours to make a messy small home clean and organized
Gretchen teamed up with Clutterbug to completely transform a small New York City apartment—creating outer order that’s designed to last.
GIFT-GIVING
A gift for someone worth celebrating
The “I Want You to Know” Journal helps you put your feelings into words. The prompts walk you through your favorite memories and the things you’ve always wanted to say, and turn them into a keepsake for someone important in your life.
ORGANIZATION
How to get started on spring cleaning
Use the shift into spring to reset your space with clutter-clearing ideas that are simple, practical, and even a little fun.
"What we do every day matters more than what we do once in a while."
GRETCHEN RUBIN
DESIGN YOUR YEAR
Would you spend a week hiding out in the Metropolitan Museum?
Podcaster and professor Sophie Gee joins Gretchen for a literary walk through the Metropolitan Museum, looking for items related to the iconic children’s novel “From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.”
DESIGN YOUR YEAR
Fun Ways to Get Moving This Spring
The Move 26 challenge continues in the Happier app with a new bingo card full of fresh ideas to help you move for 26 minutes every day. Complete a row or the entire card for an email surprise.
DESIGN YOUR YEAR
Read 25 in ’25 Honored by the Webby Awards
Last year, thousands of people made time to read every day with Gretchen’s “Read 25 in ’25″ challenge. Now, the challenge has been chosen as one of the internet’s most notable cause-driven partnerships of 2025.
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WHAT'S NEW
Discover the latest articles and podcast episodes.
CURATED COLLECTIONS
Explore Gretchen Rubin’s work on these popular topics.
Tap in to the power of your five senses as a path to a happier, more mindful life.
Unexpected insights and concrete suggestions about how to create a happier life.
Helpful tips, tools, and strategies for building (and breaking) habits.
Understand yourself and others with Gretchen Rubin’s personality framework.
ABOUT GRETCHEN
About Gretchen
Hi, I’m Gretchen Rubin. For more than a decade, I’ve been studying human nature—the science of the soul. My happiness project is to understand myself, the people around me, and how we can move from good intentions to concrete actions to build happier lives.