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Today's guest is a happiness expert and devout non-meditator. In her latest book Life in Five Senses: How Exploring the Senses Got Me Out of My Head and Into the World, she describes how a routine visit to her eye doctor made her realize she'd been overlooking a key element of happiness: her five senses.
Gretchen Rubin is the author of many books, including the New York Times bestsellers Outer Order, Inner Calm; The Four Tendencies; Better Than Before; and The Happiness Project. Her books have sold more than 3.5 million copies worldwide, and have been translated in more than thirty languages. She also hosts the top-ranking, award-winning podcast Happier with Gretchen Rubin.
In this episode we talk about:
- What led Gretchen to explore the five senses
- How we often take our senses for granted
- How our senses work with the brain to impact our perception
- The relationship between the senses and nostalgia
- The surprising power of ketchup and vanilla when it comes to the sense of taste
- The sense of hearing and what she calls her "Audio Apothecary"
- How to be a better listener
- The interplay between the senses of taste and smell
- The sense of touch and the use of comfort objects
- Why she decided to visit The Metropolitan Museum of Art everyday to explore the five senses
- And how she uses the five senses to boost creativity
Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/gretchen-rubin-588
