5 Ways To Get Happier Starting Today

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Aug 11, 2025

Discover practical strategies to enhance your happiness, grounded in cutting-edge research. Strengthen your relationships to unlock lasting joy, and explore how joining community clubs fosters deep connections. Lifelong learning is celebrated as a powerful tool for ongoing satisfaction. Learn how transcending ego through faith or philosophy brings peace, and understand why physical exercise is essential for well-being. Uncover the emotional insights that truly lead to happiness and find ways to heal from heartbreak with the power of music.

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ADVICE

Prioritize Close Relationships

Invest time and attention in close relationships like family and friends starting today.
Strong relationships predict long-term health and happiness across decades.

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ANECDOTE

Harvard Longitudinal Study On Love And Longevity

The Harvard Study of Adult Development followed participants for 90 years and linked relationships to longevity.
The happiest elderly people tended to have loving marriages or very close friends.

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ANECDOTE

A Smoking Near-Miss Prompted Change

Arthur relates quitting smoking after a near-disaster while engaged as a turning point.
Personal emergencies can prompt lasting health behavior change.

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Investing in Relationships for Lasting Happiness

06:48 • 5min

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The Joy of Community Clubs

12:16 • 4min

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Strategies for Personal Happiness

16:05 • 22min

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Understanding Happiness Through Evolutionary Insights

37:38 • 4min

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#6998

• Mentioned in 4 episodes

The Happiness Files

Insights on Work and Life

Arthur C. Brooks

#568

• Mentioned in 33 episodes

The Blue Zones

Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest

Dan Buettner

In this book, Dan Buettner documents his research on the Blue Zones, areas around the world such as Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; Loma Linda, California; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Ikaria, Greece, where people consistently live longer and healthier lives. Buettner identifies nine common lifestyle habits, known as the 'Power 9® principles,' which include moving naturally, having a sense of purpose, reducing stress, eating a plant-based diet, and maintaining strong social connections. The book provides detailed accounts of the research team’s observations and interviews with centenarians and their communities, offering practical advice on how to apply these principles to one’s own life to achieve better health and longevity.

#88

• Mentioned in 119 episodes

BOWLING ALONE

The Collapse and Revival of American Community

Robert Putnam

In 'Bowling Alone', Robert D. Putnam presents extensive data showing how Americans have become disconnected from family, friends, neighbors, and democratic structures. He argues that this decline in social capital has significant negative impacts on physical and civic health. The book explores various factors contributing to this decline, including changes in work, family structure, suburbanization, and the influence of technology such as television and the internet. Putnam also discusses historical precedents and potential solutions for reviving civic engagement and social connections.

Welcome to the inaugural episode of Office Hours with Arthur Brooks. I’m thrilled to start this podcast with a topic I’ve devoted much of my life to: how we can be truly happier.

This episode draws from my new book, The Happiness Files, a collection of essays from my How to Build a Life column in The Atlantic. But more importantly, it’s grounded in science, drawing on a 2020 study where top researchers ranked the most practical and effective ways to get happier.

Today I discuss:

• The top 5 research-backed ways to improve your well-being

• Why investing in your close relationships is the single most powerful thing you can do to be happier

• How joining a club or values-based community can restore your sense of belonging

• The link between lifelong learning and growing happiness over time • Why transcending your ego through faith, philosophy, or awe brings clarity and peace

• How physical exercise reduces unhappiness (and why that matters more than you think)

• Why self-esteem alone won’t make you happy—but understanding your emotions might

• The three elements of a real happiness strategy (and how to build your own)

• How to move on from heartbreak (and why sad music really does help)

• And much more!

Since it’s the very first episode, we’d love to hear any feedback you have. Please email us at officehours@arthurbrooks.com. And please leave a review on Apple or Spotify. Thanks for listening!

—

Where to find Arthur Brooks:

• Website: https://arthurbrooks.com/

• X: https://x.com/arthurbrooks

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arthurcbrooks/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArthurBrooks/

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGuyFRjJQFGCKzfHTBvWM6A

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arthur-c-brooks/

• Email: officehours@arthurbrooks.com

—

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro

(02:25) Introducing The Happiness Files and “10 Practical Ways to Increase Your Happiness”

(07:16) Principle #1: Invest in your relationships

(12:20) Principle #2: Join a club

(16:26) Principle #3: Be a lifelong learner

(20:11) Principle #4: Focus on something bigger than yourself

(26:03) Principle #5: Get more physical exercise

(29:35) Recap of principles 1–5

(30:22) How to craft your own happiness plan

(31:44) Strategy #1: Deepen your understanding

(32:30) Strategy #2: Practice regularly

(32:42) Strategy #3: Crystallize your learning by teaching others

(35:06) Q&A: Getting over a breakup and Arthur’s most surprising research finding

—

Referenced:

• The Happiness Files: Insights on Work and Life: https://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Files-Insights-Arthur-Brooks/dp/B0F4MFQ6VN

• Leadership and Happiness course: https://www.hbs.edu/coursecatalog/1885.html

• How to Build a Life: https://www.theatlantic.com/projects/how-build-life/

• What the Longest Study on Human Happiness Found Is the Key to a Good Life: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/01/harvard-happiness-study-relationships/672753/

• Ways to Greater Happiness: A Delphi Study: https://link.springer.com/journal/10902

• The Harvard Study of Adult Development: https://www.adultdevelopmentstudy.org/

• The Drive with Peter Attia: https://peterattiamd.com/podcast/

• Huberman Lab: https://www.hubermanlab.com/podcast

• America’s Declining Social Capital: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1981-25768-001

• The Best Friends Can Do Nothing for You: https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/04/deep-friendships-aristotle/618529/

• Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community: https://www.amazon.com/Bowling-Alone-Collapse-American-Community/dp/0743203046

• Daily Stoic: https://dailystoic.com/podcast/

• Johann Sebastian Bach: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Sebastian_Bach

• Vipassana Meditation: https://www.dhamma.org/

• Insight Meditation: https://www.insightmeditation.org/

—

Production and marketing by ⁠https://penname.co/⁠. Production provided by www.thebluewave.net. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email jordan@penname.co

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