We discuss how paying attention to the books, movies, or TV shows someone loves can provide profound insights into their character and inner life. Our happiness hack shares surprising research that shows we're actually terrible at choosing our own most flattering photos; strangers select better images of us than we do ourselves. Plus we talk to Rich Benjamin about his compelling new memoir, Talk to Me, in which he explores the history and secrets that have haunted his family.

Resources & Links Related to this episode:

Pre-order your copy of Secrets of Adulthood
Join me on book tour starting April 1, 2025
Talk to Me by Richard Benjamin (Amazon, Bookshop)
Outer Order, Inner Calm by Gretchen Rubin
Elizabeth is reading: War and Peace and nothing else these days! (Amazon, Bookshop)
Gretchen is reading: Crush by Ada Calhoun (Amazon, Bookshop)

Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com

Visit Gretchen's website to learn more about Gretchen's best-selling books, products from The Happiness Project Collection, and the Happier app.

Find the transcript for this episode on the episode details page in the Apple Podcasts app.

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Inside a research fraud scandal that rocked the scientific community — and tested the future president of MIT