Gretchen Rubin

Each person's list will differ. One person's commandment is to "Say yes," another person's commandment is to "Say no." You need to think about yourself, your values, your strengths and weaknesses, your interests.

My children make me happy for many reasons, of course. But it strikes me that one reason they make me happy is they encourage me to engage more deeply with the physical world.

Well, 'tis the season and all that good stuff. But if you're anything like me, you're not exactly gliding into the festivities this year, a glass of eggnog in one hand, some gift wrap in the other and a sprig of holly dangling playfully from your neck.

It's hard to remember the lessons I've learned. For that reason, because I'm going away on my family vacation next week, I went back to see what I wrote last August's vacation.

Today, instead of proposing one of my resolutions for your happiness project, I gathered six of my favorite resolutions from that section of the Toolbox:

Although I hate moving, there are a lot of positives that emerge during the process, and they aren't just the simple pleasures of de-cluttering.

I've talked to several people about how they deal with Mondays. Their different answers illustrate a common point: the importance of self-awareness.

As I began to prepare for my upcoming trip, I realized that I've made a lot of mistakes over the course of my traveling life, which I've tried -- over time -- to rectify.

We all see the world through our own eyes, and it can be hard to recognize how our words and actions appear to other people.

This is a small, intimate novel about an exceedingly well-educated concierge in a Paris apartment building and her relationships. Here are five reasons I think this book is essential reading for grown ups.

Last week, I posted five realistic tips for using email more efficiently, but ye olde paper post continues to deliver a large stack to my door, too. So, I developed a system to keep the pile manageable.

In his book, Tal Ben-Shahar describes the "arrival fallacy," the belief that when you arrive at a certain destination, you'll be happy. But arriving rarely makes you as happy as you expect.

The most enigmatic of my Twelve Personal Commandments is to spend out. I have a miserly nature; by spending out, I mean to stop hoarding, to trust in abundance and to use what I already have.

Being out of work is a major happiness challenge, and these days, a lot of people have lost their jobs, or are worried about hanging onto their jobs.

There's a particular moment that is one of the emotional highlights of the entire series. I looked up the passage to re-read it, and I realized that - surprise! - it has tremendous relevance to a happiness project.

Even if I feel like I had a day when I got nothing accomplished, I can comfort myself, as I climb into my smooth, tidy bed, "Well, at least I went for a walk. I ate an apple. I hugged my daughters."

Reading is an essential part of my work. It forms an important part to my social life. And far more important, reading is my favorite thing to do, by a long shot. I'm not a well-rounded person.

So I took a deep breath and calmed myself. I acted the way I wanted to feel. I tried to under-react. And I felt better, and the problem suddenly seemed less onerous.

If I make positive statements, I'll tend to convince myself and other people of a positive view of things. If I make negative statements, I'll do just the opposite.

When you feel trapped in a negative, ask yourself the positive question, and maybe that will shed light on how to change it or at least change your mind.

Feeling energetic is a key to feeling happy. When my energy feels at a low ebb, I try one of these techniques.