Live Happy Now

It’s a brand-new year and we’re all thinking about creating new habits, so ... why not make yours a fun one? This week’s guest is Mike Rucker, PhD, an esteemed organizational psychologist and author of the new book, The Fun Habit: How the Pursuit of Joy and Wonder Can Change Your Life. His research shows us how prioritizing fun can make us happier, more productive, and more energetic.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The difference between happiness and fun.
• Why the pursuit of happiness may make us miserable.
• How to assess your daily activities and design your day for fun.

Recording artist gnash has made mental health a central part of his music, delivering messages through music that might be difficult to talk about in conversation. As we observe Mental Health Awareness Month in May, it’s the perfect time to talk to gnash about his latest album, The Art of Letting Go, which is a journey through the tumultuous emotions brought on by the pandemic. In this episode, you’ll hear how making this album helped save his life during the pandemic and what he hopes we all take away from it.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How The Art of Letting Go developed during the pandemic.
• Why he shares breathing exercises with his audience when he’s on stage.
• How he uses music, movement, and meditation to manage anxiety and worry.

We are now officially in the middle of summer, and that means it’s time to take it a little bit easier and take time for ourselves. So this week, host Paula Felps sits down with Live Happy brand marketing manager Casey Johnson to look at some of their favorite episodes offering great advice on how to have a happier summer. They revisit a few of their faves and tell us why these episodes are perfect for helping us make the most of this summer.

It’s beginning to look a lot like the holidays, and for many of us, that can be a challenging time for many. This week’s guest, Melissa Urban, tells us how setting boundaries now can make the holiday season run smoother. The Whole30 founder has become known as “the boundary lady” and her bestseller, The Book of Boundaries: Set the Limits That Will Set You Free is changing the way people learn to say no.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What a boundary is — and how to learn to set one.
• How setting boundaries can improve relationships.
• How to hold boundaries throughout the holiday season.

With her bestselling book, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, psychotherapist, author and podcast host Lori Gottlieb taught us more about how therapy can change our lives. Now, she has created a guided journal based on the feedback she received to that book, which is designed to walk users through 52 weekly sessions that will transform their lives. This week, she talks about how to use it to create positive change in the coming year.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How regular guided journaling can help work through challenges.
• Why small incremental changes are the building blocks of big transformations.
• How to use journaling to help make the new year happier and more fulfilling.