Gretchen Rubin
Gretchen Rubin
Gretchen Craft Rubin is an American author, blogger and speaker...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionAuthor
CountryUnited States of America
loved promise thrills tv whenever
I've always loved 'Before and After' stories, in books, magazines, and TV shows. Whenever I read those words, I'm hooked. The thought of a transformation - any kind of transformation - thrills me. And that's the promise of habits.
choose consequences embrace feelings good lasts loss negative pleasure treats wary
I embrace treats, but I'm also very wary of treats. Treats help us feel energized, appreciated, and enthusiastic - but very often, the things we choose as 'treats' aren't good for us. The pleasure lasts a minute, but then feelings of guilt, loss of control, and other negative consequences just deepen the lousiness of the day.
books helps kept lose might notes odd organize related seeing stimulate whether wondered worry
For notes related to books I'm writing, I've wondered whether I should organize my notes better, but I do find that the action or scrolling through them and seeing odd juxtapositions of ideas helps to stimulate my own ideas and creativity. I worry that if I kept the notes in a highly-structured way, I might lose some of these benefits.
cite detail happiness highly noticed sources study surprised universal
During my study of happiness, I noticed something that surprised me: 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.
against biography both churchill easy fancy figures learned love mostly passive strong using winston words work
It's so easy to use tired, shopworn figures of speech. I love using long, fancy words but have learned - mostly from writing my biography of Winston Churchill - that short, strong words work better. I am ever-vigilant against the passive and against jargon, both of which are so insidious.
corrects frames opposition remarks
A person with 'oppositional conversational style' is a person who, in conversation, disagrees with and corrects whatever you say. He or she may do this in a friendly way, or a belligerent way, but this person frames remarks in opposition to whatever you venture.
ask atmosphere broaden connect contribute decide growth help life money precious series spend time trying whenever
Whenever I'm trying to decide how to spend my precious time, energy, or money, I ask myself a series of questions. 'Will this broaden or deepen my relationships?' 'Will this contribute to an atmosphere of growth in my life?' 'Is this a way to 'Be Gretchen?' and 'Will this help connect me to my past?'
bad bang good happiness huge lives quantities swallow
While television is a good servant, it's a bad master. It can swallow up huge quantities of our lives without much happiness bang for the buck.
music tv
I'm much calmer when there's no TV or music playing in the background.
dividing love people
I love taxonomies, categories, ways of dividing people into groups.
inventing love ways
I love finding - or inventing - ways to categorize people.
crucial files finds might organized
For one person, organized files might be a crucial tool for creativity; another person finds inspiration in random juxtapositions.
comfort food literature mental
Children's literature is one of my joys, and it's also my mental comfort food.
avoid aware far hard people relative tend work
It's hard to avoid 'unconscious overclaiming.' In unconscious overclaiming, we unconsciously overestimate our contributions relative to others. This makes sense, because we're far more aware of what we do than what other people do. Also, we tend to do the work that we value.