Unlock a Happier Life: 3 Research-Backed Secrets

In this episode, you and I are getting intentional about your happiness. Happiness is misunderstood. Fortunately, there’s a ton of research that explains why it can be so elusive and, even better, HOW you can create a happier life, starting today. Our conversation about happiness begins with breaking down the two types of happiness and why it’s important for you to include both in your life. You’ll also learn four practical takeaways that research says are key for cultivating more happiness in your daily life. I love this episode, and I can’t wait for you to experience it! I am bringing the science and the strategies, and I have a phenomenal metaphor to share with you that will forever change the way you view happiness. You’re not only going to learn what to do; you’re going to experience several listeners just like you who are seeking more happiness and fulfillment in their lives. This is a highly relatable, entertaining, and transformative episode, so don’t miss out. You’ll be happy you joined us. Xo Mel Check out research and other resources at melrobbins.com/podcast. And if you want to start owning your mornings, join my free Wake Up Challenge. In this episode, you’ll learn: 3:00: Can’t remember the last time you were truly happy? You’re not alone. 5:00: Does this happen to you when you chase happiness? 8:00: What do we mean by happiness, anyway? 8:30: You knew this was coming- my favorite metaphor for happiness! 10:15: Science puts happiness into these two buckets. 14:00: The problem when you’re on a big healing journey and what to do about it. 23:00: Can you feel happy even during the mundane, ordinary days? 24:15: Believe it or not, here’s where you find true happiness. 26:30: This is the single best decision you can make to cultivate happiness. 30:00: This is how your brain reads loneliness because you’re meant to connect. 35:00: Building warm relationships starts here. 37:30: Here’s how I reorganized my own life to stop feeling lonely. 39:50: My mom is a pro at this and research shows it will boost your energy. 44:30: What do you need to know about feeling inner peace? 46:30: Here’s why older people tend to be happier. 48:30: Three surprising ways to actually invite more peace in your life. Want me to answer your question on the podcast? Submit it here. This episode pairs well with “You’ll Never Be Truly Happy Until You Start Doing This” Learn how to train your mind with “The Mindset Reset Toolkit.”. Disclaimer

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Mel Robbins?

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• 0:45Mel Robbins?

  through SoFi Bank, N.A., member FDIC. To me, self-expression is all about showing the world what's on the inside. That's why I want you to discover Pandora Talsman, a new collection designed to help you express every side of who you are. Featuring meaningful zodiac symbols and personalized jewelry pieces, each design tells a story that's uniquely yours. Pandora Talsman, a new language of self-expression, because every version of you deserves to be seen. Shop new styles in store or online at pandora.net. This podcast is brought to you by Expedia. If you haven't booked your next trip yet, now is the time. Whether you're going to fly across the country or maybe you just want to explore

• 1:29Mel Robbins?

  a cool beach town this summer, Expedia makes it easy. Flights, hotels, vacation rentals, cars, activities, everything you need in one place. That means no jumping between sites, no hassle. And when you bundle, you can save up to 30% with everything you need in one app. Sign in to save, savings vary. Expedia, the one place you go to go places.

• 1:51Mel Robbins?

  Hey, it's your friend Mel, and welcome to an episode of the Mel Robbins Podcast that is going to help you be happier. Let's do this thing.

• 2:04Mel Robbins?

  Hey, it's Mel. I am so excited you're here because today you and I are going to dig into a super cool topic, the science of happiness. And there are so many new listeners that if you're new, I just want to take a minute and welcome you personally to the podcast. I'm Mel. I'm a New York Times bestselling author and one of the world's leading experts on change, motivation, and habits. And I believe that there are simple things that you and I can do based on research and common sense that will help us both create a better life. And one of the biggest elements of a better life is getting intentional about being a happier you, bringing more happiness into your life. And the subject of happiness,

• 2:46Mel Robbins?

  the science around it, it's really misunderstood. But the good news today for you and for me is that you don't have to dig into the research because I've done it for you. I have read all the latest research and I'm also very, very familiar with the largest longitudinal study, 84 years long and going. And today, what you and I are going to talk about is I'm going to boil down the decades of research into a powerful metaphor that is going to help you understand happiness at a whole new level. And I'm also going to give you the three elements of happiness based on the research that you can apply to your life.

• 3:28Mel Robbins?

  And even though this is all grounded in research and science, I'm not trying to give you a PhD today. You're going to leave with three takeaways that a normal human being like you or me can apply to our already busy and overwhelming life so that we become happier in our lives. And I so believe in what we're about to talk about because these three things that we're going to focus on today, this is what I have been working on for the past three years of my own life. And the difference that it has made in the amount of happiness that I'm experiencing It's kind of hard to describe in words.

• 4:07Mel Robbins?

  So I want to say right up front, this conversation, it could actually change your life. Absolutely, everything we're going to talk about today is accessible to you. And I also want to thank the sponsors of the Mel Robbins Podcast. Because of their support, I can bring you this awesome stuff at zero cost. And that brings me to our very first question about happiness from a listener named Andrea.

• 4:34Speaker 01

  Hey Mel, it's Andrea. Can you talk about happiness? I can't think of a time that I have felt true happiness. I'm just living, I guess. I feel that something is missing, and I believe it's happiness.

• 4:49Mel Robbins?

  Andrea, I love the way you framed that question. And for you listening, I'm going to put that question right back to you. Can you think of a time that you felt true happiness? Or are you, like most people, that you feel like something is missing from your life, and you can't quite put your finger on it? You know, when I hear Andrea's question, I can totally relate to it, because I know I felt the way that she's feeling. And one of the mistakes that I was making when I felt like something was missing is I, of course, went on the search. I got to find happiness.

• 5:32Mel Robbins?

  And here's the first piece of research that I want to talk about. Research says that happiness, or that feeling that we're seeking of happiness, it's often fleeting, because we are searching for happiness in the wrong places. In fact, researchers at Rutgers and the University of Toronto found that people who pursue happiness, you're chasing it, you're looking for it outside yourself, you often feel like you don't have enough time in the day, and this paradoxically makes you feel unhappy. Because when you feel like you don't have enough time in the day because you're constantly chasing all these things outside of you, you start to feel like you're not in control of your life. And I think that's what Andrea is talking about.

• 6:14Mel Robbins?

  That we're all chasing down some version of happiness that we think we're supposed to be chasing, right? That society has marketed some version of life to us. And that's why you probably are familiar with that phrase, "I'll be happy when." We all succumb to that thinking. "I'll be happy when I lose the weight, I fall in love, I land that dream job, I pay off my bills, I get into my dream school, I find the perfect apartment." And there's multiple problems with thinking like this. First of all, if you think that you'll be happier when you achieve something, what always happens is when you achieve it, you're not as happy as you thought you would be.

• 6:59Mel Robbins?

  And then all of a sudden, because you don't have this big goal in front of you anymore, your happiness plummets. And so, the research is very, very clear that these big events that we're chasing, that we think are going to give us a boost of happiness, that happiness doesn't last. And there's a second reason why this kind of thinking, that you'll be happy at some point in the future, why this is really problematic. It's because you are anchoring your happiness on something that hasn't happened yet. That means your happiness is something you have to earn. Your happiness is something that's outside of you. And that's not what happiness is at all. Happiness is always within your control. Happiness is something that you want to cultivate

• 7:43Mel Robbins?

  in your life where you are right now. And the good news is, you don't have to wait to be happy when. You can learn to be happier now. So let me explain, based on the research, how happiness works when it comes to you individually. So there's this formula that's supported by the science that says that if you think about your capacity for happiness, you have 100% capacity for happiness. That's what you got. "Your cup can be full and runneth over." 100%, baby, happiness is for you. 50% of that capacity is genetics.

• 8:26Mel Robbins?

  That's your default. So you might be somebody that has 50% genetics that are preset to being very sunny and kind of bubbly and happy. Or 50% of your genetics might be like, "Meh, you're kind of grumpy." That's okay, because you still have the other 50% to play with. 10% of the rest is based on the circumstances that you're facing right now. And 40% of happiness, period, in your life right now, is completely under your control. And that's what we're going to focus on, because that's awesome. No matter what kind of family you were born into, no matter what you're facing right

• 9:05Mel Robbins?

  now in your life, 40% of your capacity for happiness right now, completely in your control. And so before we go forward, I want to make sure that as we're talking, that we're in complete agreement about what the word "happiness" means. Because when you and I use the word "happy" or "happiness," we might be saying totally different things. There's a huge spectrum when people use this word. In fact, researchers even talk about the fact that happiness is all over the map. Some people, when they say "happiness," they mean laughing and having a good time. Other people mean fulfillment, or thriving, or kicking ass in life.

• 9:50Mel Robbins?

  And so you and I are going to have a conversation right now about what you mean when you say "happiness." Where are you on this spectrum between laughter and having a great time, to feeling completely fulfilled and thriving in life? And so in order for you and I to get on the same page, I'm going to bring a metaphor in. You know Mel Robbins. She loves her metaphors. She loves her visual explanations for these big, heady concepts. And thankfully, I got a great one for happiness. So whenever you hear the word "happiness," I want you to think about an ocean, okay? There are waves in an ocean, and that's one spectrum of happiness. And waves come and they go.

• 10:35Mel Robbins?

  And having fun in the waves requires you to jump in the waves, to get into the ocean, to decide that you're going to go have fun. But then, if you think about the ocean, there are days that there's no waves at all. It's perfectly still. And the ocean itself, and your ability to stand in that ocean, to float and to swim, that's a deeper form of happiness. Or what about the days where the ocean is stormy and you wouldn't dare go in? But on those days that you're on the beach, aren't you so present to the wind, to the salt, to the waves crashing on the beach? That's what I want you to think about.

• 11:20Mel Robbins?

  That huge range of how an ocean shows up. And I love this metaphor of an ocean for happiness, the waves being fun, and the still ocean being your ability to just experience happiness. And you being present, even on the stormiest days, to the little details. I love this range because it ties right back to all of the research, but it gives us a visual. So when you look at the research around happiness, researchers have put happiness into two big categories. One is hedonic happiness. And hedonic happiness is, am I having fun right now?

• 12:04Mel Robbins?

  It's the moment-to-moment fluctuating experiences that you have. And let's go back to the metaphor. It's like the waves in the ocean. They come and they go. You can jump in, you can play, you can have fun, and then it's over. And then there is the deeper happiness, the eutemonic happiness, which is the sense of your life having meaning, of you feeling fulfilled and thriving in that life of yours. And it's important for you to understand that happiness has these two buckets. Because I think what happens for a lot of us, and this kind of gets to Andrea's question, is that... Maybe you have one type of happiness.

• 12:49Mel Robbins?

  Maybe you're having a lot of fun on the surface, but life doesn't feel very meaningful. Or maybe you're deep in it, but you're not having any fun. And so I really want to unpack the difference between these two things and why you need both before we jump into the three different ways that you can increase happiness in your life. And we're going to do that by bringing in another question from a listener named Rachel. But first, we're going to hear a word from our sponsor, and then we'll hear Rachel's question when we come back.

• 13:24Mel Robbins?

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• 14:08Mel Robbins?

  that lets you do it your way, right? Visit schwab.com to learn more. That's S-C-H-W-A-B dot com. What's your favorite kind of vacation? Do you like to do physical stuff and see a bunch of sights? Or do you just, oh my God, just let me lounge by a pool and don't talk to me? Scottsdale, Arizona, will let you do it all. And fall is one of the most beautiful times to visit Scottsdale, with warm days, cool desert evenings, and endless sunshine. Here are just some of the things you can do in Scottsdale. Visit legendary Old Town Scottsdale with over 100 restaurants, dozens of art galleries, and boutique shopping. Stay at award-winning luxury resorts designed for relaxation.

• 14:52Mel Robbins?

  Spend a day at one of Scottsdale's world-class spas. Eat at an award-winning restaurant. Winning restaurant with unmatched sunsets, play championship golf courses surrounded by stunning Sonoran desert landscapes, and top it all off with beautiful desert scenery that instantly helps you disconnect. We spend so much time taking care of everyone else. Scottsdale is where you can finally take care of yourself. Visit unwindinsscottsdale.com to plan your trip this fall. Here's something you might find encouraging. The best version of your life isn't always down the road. Sometimes it's right here in front of you. That's why Buick is here to help you show up at your best, live with intention, and remember that now is exceptional.

• 15:37Mel Robbins?

  Whether you're showing up in style with the Buick En vista, with its head-turning design and quiet-tuning technology with active noise cancellation, or you're embarking on a night out in the three-row Buick Enclave, where a tech-forward spacious interior keeps you connected to your drive and your crew. Every Buick SUV is designed to reward the road you're on and the moment you're in. So keep pushing yourself forward, but remember to enjoy the ride today. Visit buick.com to discover premium design that amplifies every day. That's buick.com. Buick: Exceptional by Design. To me, self-expression is all about showing the world what's on the inside.

• 16:21Mel Robbins?

  That's why I want you to discover Pandora Talsman, a new collection designed to help you express every side of who you are. Featuring meaningful Zodiac symbols and personalized jewelry pieces, each design tells a story that's uniquely yours. Pandora Talsman: A new language of self-expression, because every version of you deserves to be seen. Shop new styles in store or online at pandora.net.

• 16:52Mel Robbins?

  Hey, it's Mel. Welcome back. I want to thank you for listening to our sponsors because they help us bring you this podcast at zero cost. And today's topic is super important. We are unpacking all of the research around happiness. And we've been talking about the importance of what researchers call the two parts of happiness, hedonic and eutemonic happiness. And eutemonic happiness is that sense of life having meaning and being worthwhile. And we're going to go to a question from Rachel because it's going to help me truly distinguish between the two parts and why hedonic having fun is really important.

• 17:32Speaker 02

  Hey, Mel. I absolutely love your podcast and all of your work. I have a very loaded question, and I know a one-size-fits-all answer might not exist, but I wanted to ask anyway. How can I truly be happy? How do I cultivate happiness? I read so many self-help books, read a lot about the effects of childhood trauma. I journal. I try to be conscious of my habitual thoughts and patterns and work to reframe them. I exercise. I'm always listening to inspiring and transformational content like you. I feel like I do all the things, but I still struggle just to be happy and to feel happy. And I feel very stuck in the

• 18:15Speaker 02

  same emotions. And I really want to change. I really want to enjoy my life. Do you have any advice?

• 18:21Mel Robbins?

  Rachel, I so relate to you. And I want to just pass the mic to you listening right now. When Rachel said, "I just want to enjoy my life," didn't you get the chills? Didn't you nod along and say, "Yeah, I just want to enjoy my life, too?" And this is really on my mind because... I think that's the point of life, right? To really try to enjoy it. And one of the things that I notice can happen when you are in a period in your life where you're trying to heal. You're investing in yourself, in your personal growth. You mentioned that you're working on trauma.

• 19:04Mel Robbins?

  You're trying to dig out of some of the holes, maybe, that you feel like you fell into. You're trying to change your mindset. That's serious work. That was me for years, too. Here's the problem with having a big healing journey. You're not having any fun. You know, I think about periods of my life when I was going through a lot of change, and I was working on myself, and I was doing everything that you're doing. Every book I picked up was self-help. Everything that I listened to was self-improvement. I couldn't even remember the last time I read a fiction novel, or I went to a concert, or I went to a party. Everything got so serious because my focus became so serious.

• 19:49Mel Robbins?

  And my focus was about improving my life, improving my life, improving my life. And doing the work to change your life, it's important. Doing the work to identify toxic patterns that you have, or bad-thinking patterns that make you feel like shit, that's super important. But you must also double down on the fun while you're doing the deeper work. And so, the first thing that I want you to do is I want you to set an intention that your number-one goal this year is to have more fun. To invest in that first category, hedonic happiness, that researchers say is so important. Because, yes, it's meaningful.

• 20:34Mel Robbins?

  Yes, it's fulfilling to do the hard work to change your life for the better. But changing your life for the better also means that you need more moments of fun in your life. And I worry a lot about this based on what we've all experienced in the past three years. We've all become hermits. It's hard enough to get yourself out of your house, but the other thing that's happened is if you're not going into work, if you're still working from home, you're also missing out on all of the spontaneous stuff that happens when you bump into people when you're out and about. In fact, I can tell you a story. Just the other night, this happened to me. It was Sunday night and, you know, as a bit of background, my husband and I had gotten

• 21:18Mel Robbins?

  some really awful news last week that a very, very close friend of ours suddenly died. Age 47, heart attack, gone. And I had been holed up in my house ever since hearing the news. I was super sad, feeling down, and I hadn't left the house in days. And so on Sunday, Chris says to me, "Mel, I made a 4:30 reservation at the paddle tennis courts," which is a kind of form of, almost like ping pong that you can play, sort of like pickleball, in the middle of the winter on these tennis courts outside, "with some friends." It was the last thing I wanted to do.

• 21:59Mel Robbins?

  I wanted to just curl up on the couch and suck my thumb and feel sad. And we got into the car, and the entire ride over, I was sitting there thinking, "Should I tell Chris I'm pissed that he made this date with this couple to go play paddle? Should I tell him this is the last thing that I want to do?" I kept saying to myself, "Should I say this? Should I not say it?" And then I would say, "Don't, don't shit on his parade." Like, you know, just suck it up. It's gonna be okay. We pull up, the sun's starting to go down, it's freezing, I've got a hat on and mittens on, and I'm grumpy, and I don't really want to be there. And then I see our friends, and I felt a little lighter.

• 22:42Mel Robbins?

  Do you know it took about five seconds of hitting that ball around for me to feel totally different? The truth is, I needed the fun. I needed the laughter. I needed to not be thinking about something so heavy. I needed to see people that I really like. I needed to do something that wasn't that serious, like working on myself, or feeling sad, or grieving. I needed fun. And getting out on that paddle court, it was fun. And there's a part of me that is sitting here going, "Mel, are we really having a conversation right now on this podcast about the obvious?"

• 23:24Mel Robbins?

  That we need to schedule time to have fun? That we need to force ourselves out of our houses? That we need to break this habit of being isolated and lonely? Yeah, we do have to have this conversation. Because I don't think you and I have truly grasped the extent to which our day-to-day lives and our happiness has been impacted by these past three years. I mean, even those of us who really enjoyed that period of lockdown where we were trapped inside with our families, this new normal, this part of it, where we're sort of back to normal, but we're not, but we're coping, but we're like, this situation? The loneliness and isolation? It feels like it's become everybody's new lifestyle.

• 24:09Mel Robbins?

  It's our new default. And so, it sounds obvious for me to say to you, you have to prioritize fun. But this isn't just obvious, it's well researched. Researchers have proven that the difference between people who are happy and those of us who aren't is that happy people prioritize doing things that make them happy. I know, it's so dumb! But I need the reminder too! So now, let's go back to my analogy about the ocean and the beach and waves and happiness. And I want you to just imagine that you're sitting on the beach.

• 24:51Mel Robbins?

  And those waves are rolling in and they're rolling out and there's a boogie board sitting next to you. At some point, you have to get off the towel and you gotta run into that ocean and you gotta go play. And the fact is, it just takes one person to get everybody else to go. There's always that one person in a group of people at a beach who stands up first and grabs the boogie board and says, "Let's go body surfing. Come on, guys, let's go into the waves." And thankfully, this past Sunday night, for me, it was Chris. He was that one person. And look. Being intentional about enjoying your life, about having fun,

• 25:33Mel Robbins?

  particularly during those periods of time where you're grieving, where you are going through something difficult, where life feels heavy, prioritizing fun is critical. But that's just one of the three things that you and I are going to discuss when it comes to getting intentional and amplifying up the 40% of happiness that is within your control right now. And if you're sitting there scratching your head going, "Oh, my God, this is so me, but Mel, like, I think I forgot how to have fun." Don't worry about it. I've got an entire episode that we did a while back called "How to Have More Fun", and I will link to that along with all the studies that we're talking about in the show notes.

• 26:18Mel Robbins?

  And so now that you and I have been playing in the waves and you understand that dragging yourself out of the house, to the beach, off the towel, into the ocean, and forcing yourself to do things that are fun, that that is part of happiness that we cannot escape, you and I are now going to go deeper into the ocean. And we're going to talk about the two other elements that you can tap into to create more happiness in your life right now. And we're going to do that using more questions from fellow listeners of the podcast when we come back.

• 26:53Mel Robbins?

  Are you getting enough omega-3s in your diet? Your heart, brain, and immune system all need omega-3s to function the way they're supposed to. Now, this is backed by tens of thousands of studies, and yet over 80% of Americans are not getting enough omega-3s from food alone. That's why I want to tell you about Nordic Naturals. This is not your typical fish oil. They use high-quality, sustainably sourced ingredients. They test everything for purity and freshness. And get this, it actually tastes good. No gross, ugh, aftertaste. And the worst, no fishy burps, I hate those.

• 27:34Mel Robbins?

  That's why Nordic Naturals is the number one selling omega-3 brand. Use promo code MEL for 15% off your next order at Nordic.com and discover the power of omega-3 with Nordic Naturals. Supplements are not evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent diseases. When it comes to investing, or really anything, don't you think it's important to choose a company that you can trust? One where you have the freedom to do things your way with confidence? Because some days, you might want a little more control and flexibility. And other times, you may need a specialist in your corner to help out. Well, with Schwab, you get all that and more, all in one place.

• 28:16Mel Robbins?

  Schwab has everything from self-directed investing when you're thinking, "Hey, I got this," all the way to full-service wealth management when you're like, "You know what? I'm gonna need to get some help." That includes planning for big goals too, like college, buying a house, retirement planning, and more. Because if you're gonna do this whole money thing, you might as well choose a firm that lets you do it your way, right? Visit schwab.com to learn more. That's S-C-H-W-A-B dot com. What's your favorite kind of vacation? Do you like to do physical stuff and see a bunch of sights? Or do you just, "Oh, my God, just let me lounge by a pool and don't talk to me." Scottsdale, Arizona, will let you do it all.

• 28:57Mel Robbins?

  And fall is one of the most beautiful times to visit Scottsdale with warm days, cool desert evenings, and endless sunshine. Here are just some of the things you can do in Scottsdale. Visit legendary Old Town Scottsdale with over 100 restaurants, dozens of art galleries, and boutique shopping. Stay at award-winning luxury resorts designed for relaxation. Spend a day at one of Scottsdale's world-class spas. Eat at an award-winning restaurant with unmatched sunsets. Play championship golf courses surrounded by stunning Sonoran desert landscapes. And top it all off with beautiful desert scenery that instantly helps you disconnect. We spend so much time taking care of everyone else.

• 29:39Mel Robbins?

  Scottsdale is where you can finally take care of yourself. Visit unwindinsscottsdale.com to plan your trip this fall.

• 29:53Mel Robbins?

  Welcome back. I'm Mel Robbins and you and I are talking about what research says about creating more happiness in your life. We've already talked about the fact that researchers have identified two types of happiness: hedonic happiness and eutemonic happiness, both of which are critical to your overall feelings of happiness. And we've talked about why getting intentional about having more fun is critical to you feeling happier now. Now, we're going to jump into the deeper part of happiness, and that is the eutemonic happiness, whether or not your life has meaning. Because when you go through periods of life where life is monotonous, it just feels kind

• 30:38Mel Robbins?

  of blah, you're on autopilot, you're not going to feel that happy. Just ask Jenna.

• 30:44Speaker 03

  Hey Mel, my name is Jenna, and my question for you is, how do you truly find happiness in everyday, ordinary life? I'm a mom of two boys, and I struggle most days with being as joyful as I was when they were very little.

• 30:58Mel Robbins?

  As a mother of three kids who are now young adults, I can relate to what you were saying about how you were joyful when they were little. And I love that you use the word joyful, because I want to go back to that metaphor that I introduced at the very beginning of an ocean, and thinking about an ocean when you think about happiness. And so, to me, when you go to the beach and it's a very, very calm day, there are no waves, there might not even be a cloud in the sky, boy, it sure is beautiful. Happiness is like a still ocean on those days.

• 31:37Mel Robbins?

  It's your ability to stand in that ocean and feel this state of presence and connectedness and gratitude to simply being in the ocean.

• 31:50Mel Robbins?

  And I want to come back to something that you also said that I absolutely loved. You use the word "ordinary." And the reason why I think it's important for us to focus in on the word "ordinary" is we often make the mistake of thinking that happiness is this big thing, this big burst, the big wave. And when it comes to the eutemonic happiness, the deeper meaning in your life that creates the sense of happiness and fulfillment for you, I want to flip this perspective. Because true happiness comes from finding the extraordinary in the ordinary.

• 32:35Mel Robbins?

  That's right, true happiness is actually pretty ordinary. And researchers have identified the number one factor in you living a happy life. And it is the most ordinary thing on the planet, which is why most of us miss it. And that's the quality and depth of your relationships. So let's unpack this. The Harvard Study of Adult Development is the longest in-depth longitudinal study of human life that's ever been done. I mean, this has been going on for 84 years and counting.

• 33:15Mel Robbins?

  And for those of you super geeks like me out there, this used to be called the Harvard Men's Study. So when you hear people talking about the Harvard Study of Adult Development, that's the new name for this. And it now includes three generations of people that they've been studying. The original 724 participants now include 1,300 descendants. How cool is that? And here's the thing about this study. This study followed people through their life, asking them all kinds of questions as people aged. And one of the reasons why this study is so profound is because it tracked people as they lived. Most studies have people looking backwards, which means, you know, when you look backwards,

• 33:59Mel Robbins?

  you often change the details. That's why the Harvard Study of Adult Development is so exciting and so accurate and the most accurate and important study of happiness that's ever been done. And Dr. Robert Waldinger is the fourth director of the study. And he and past study leaders have published these amazing findings that you and I can apply to our lives. These results from the Harvard Men's Study, they've been replicated in five other huge global studies. And I'm telling you all this because there's one singular conclusion from all of this data, all of this research, all of these fancy institutions.

• 34:40Mel Robbins?

  And it's this: Good relationships make you happier and healthier. The single best decision you can make to improve your health and happiness is to cultivate what researchers call "warm relationships." I know what you're thinking, "Mel, what the hell are warm relationships?" Well, from a clinical standpoint, warm relationships are relationships that don't cause conflict, and you feel positive emotions around the people that you have a warm relationship with. Said in a normal person's way, it's basically people that make you feel warm and fuzzy. That's what warm relationships are. And I want you to stop and think right now. Let's apply the science.

• 35:25Mel Robbins?

  If you think about people in your life, I just want you to put two columns in your mind. Who would you put under the column labeled "warm"? They give you the warm and fuzzies. You get a text from them, you're like, "Ooh, yeah, okay." You know, you're excited to see them. You feel energized when you make plans. Now, there's the cold column. These are people that put you on edge. These are people that drain your energy. These are the people that when they call or text you, you're like bracing for something. I can boil 84 years of research down to one takeaway. You want to be happier? Put all your energy into warm relationships.

• 36:05Mel Robbins?

  Building them, strengthening them, spending time with those people in the warm column. You do that, you will be a happier you right now. And the second way that you can do that, by the way, prioritizing the warm, is spend less time with people in the cold column. You either need to stop hanging out with them because they're sucking your energy dry, or you gotta put some effort into warming them up by forgiving them, or reframing how you see them, or working on your boundaries so that you're not triggered by them and their negativity doesn't impact your happiness. So, keep that visual of a warm and a cold column. And as you meet people in your life,

• 36:50Mel Robbins?

  you can immediately feel what they're like. Are they warm? Are they bringing out the fuzzies? Or are you feeling on edge? Because when it comes to happiness, your happiness right now, not the "I'll be when" happy, the happiness that truly matters, standing in that deep end of the ocean. The quality of your relationships is truly the most important thing that matters. And I can explain why at an even deeper level. The reason why this matters so much, it is the number one indicator of a happy life: good, warm relationships. Floating in that ocean with your warm buddies, keeping you buoyant. The reason why is evolution.

• 37:32Mel Robbins?

  See, positive or warm interactions with people, you know what that does, that warm, fuzzy feeling? Those kind of people in your warm column? They make you feel safe. When you're around those people, you're not on edge, so your body feels safe. And the opposite is true when you're around people that you would put in the cold column. Because when you're around negativity, when people trigger you, and they put you on edge, when you feel like you can't be yourself, you're now in a stress response of fight, flight, or freeze. And this response to other people, it's wired in you. Early Homo sapiens survived because their bodies and their brains, they not only encouraged connection,

• 38:15Mel Robbins?

  but they also signaled when somebody might be unsafe. You and I survived because we're social beings. So this is hardwired into us. And here's where it gets interesting. When you feel loneliness, your brain perceives that as life-threatening. And loneliness is not just about physical separation from other people. You can feel very lonely in a crowded room. You can feel lonely in a bad marriage. You can feel lonely in a toxic friendship. And if you're nodding your head right now, thinking, "Wow, maybe it's not unhappiness.

• 38:57Mel Robbins?

  Maybe the core issue for me is I'm lonely." Well, 75% of adults feel moderate to high levels of loneliness. And loneliness is about the quality of your relationships. And I want to tie this back to evolution. Loneliness feels threatening because you're meant to survive in a tribe of people. You're meant to be connected with people that make you feel safe and warm. It's not only part of happiness. This goes down to your mind and body needing protection.

• 39:38Mel Robbins?

  And they've even proven that when life is really hard, when it can come at you in full-on attack mode, when you're in survival mode, warm, connected relationships protect you from the stress of life. So how do you do this? How do you tap into relationships? It sounds simple, but again, make the column warm and cold. And then call your friends. Text them. Arrange time to meet them. So when you feel a pang of loneliness, I want you to understand it's an alarm, just like anxiety. It's a signal that you're missing connection.

• 40:22Mel Robbins?

  Please do not ignore it. You may be surprised to hear that I felt this way for a very long time. I kept saying out loud, "I'm not happy. I don't feel fulfilled." But when I dug deep into what was really going on for me, the core issue was loneliness. I was having fun. I was really busy. I was doing meaningful work. But deep down inside, I was really lonely. And it may also surprise you to hear that it was during one of the most successful stretches in my career. I was on the road all the time. I was booked nonstop to give speeches.

• 41:05Mel Robbins?

  I was working on all kinds of projects with Audible. The business was booming. I was making lots of money. And I have never been unhappier because I was lonely. I was traveling so much, chasing success, chasing achievement, going for the next thing, staying busy, that I never saw my friends. I barely saw Chris. I missed out on a ton of time with our daughters while they were in high school. It was just go, go, go. Now, I had a lot of fun on the business trips. I would laugh a lot. I was always traveling with colleagues, so I wasn't alone.

• 41:46Mel Robbins?

  And I was having fun in the waves of life. But when you talk about floating in the deep end of the ocean, I was profoundly lonely. And that meant I was profoundly unhappy. And it can be powerful when you admit this to yourself because when you realize what you're dealing with is loneliness, that helps you identify the issue you need to improve, which is you need to start reaching out to people. You know, we underestimate the impact that simply getting an unexpected text from an old friend can have on you.

• 42:28Mel Robbins?

  I mean, think about how amazing it is when you have a birthday and everybody on social media that gets, you know, the kind of notification that it's your birthday, they come out of nowhere and they wish you happy birthday. It's like, that's unbelievable. It feels so good. You haven't talked to that person since high school, but it feels good to have somebody just give you a quick comment on your birthday. And so if you're sitting around saying, "I'm really lonely," but you're not reaching out, you're not calling people, you're not the one making plans or inviting people over for dinner, guess what, you're gonna stay lonely. Because when I really looked in the mirror and said, "I'm lonely, I need to do something

• 43:10Mel Robbins?

  about this, I never get invited anywhere, I don't see anybody," well, I wasn't inviting anybody over, I wasn't making any plans. It starts with you. And, look, it could be anybody. It could be friends, family, coworkers. All you need to do is identify old relationships, or cold relationships, or warm relationships, where you haven't seen somebody in a long time, and reach out. And by the way, it could be old relationships, it could be people you haven't seen in a long time, just anybody at all that makes you feel warm, start putting energy into talking,

• 43:52Mel Robbins?

  texting, commenting, and making plans to see them. And be careful of the cold people, because research shows that spending time with the people in the cold column, it can actually make you feel more lonely, and it even worsens your health to be around people like that. And so you've got your friend Mel Robbins' permission to stop putting energy into draining relationships, because that's only gonna make you feel more lonely. And spend more time with warm relationships. And that brings me back to Jenna's question, because she mentioned, did you notice, that she felt happier when her kids were little?

• 44:31Mel Robbins?

  I suspect that when your kids were little, you were probably part of mom groups. You saw young moms all the time, at drop-off, at pickup, at playgroup, and you felt like you were part of something. You had more warm relationships in your life. That's a sign that you're just missing connection. I know I said it already, but I can't highlight enough how profound of a difference it can make to simply admit to yourself that you're lonely.

• 45:05Mel Robbins?

  That was the turning point for me. When I realized a couple of years ago, "Holy cow, I'm unhappy because I'm profoundly lonely." I don't see Chris enough, so I'm lonely in my marriage. I am lonely in my family because I'm not around, I'm working all the time. I never see my friends. And so, once I said it was loneliness, that was the cause of my unhappiness, I could do something about it. And you want to know the first decision I made? I made a decision that I was going to change my work-life. That I was going to get off the road. That Oakley being in high school was like a melting ice cube. And once the time was gone, I was not going to get it back.

• 45:48Mel Robbins?

  And so, I reorganized my entire career, my entire business. Instead of sitting on a plane, I'm now sitting above my garage, talking to you in a microphone, so that I can be home. And it took a lot of work, but I'll tell you what. Realizing that traveling that much for work was making it hard to cultivate those warm relationships, that was a huge wake-up call. Because on the surface, it looked like I was having a great time. I was in the waves. But I sure as hell wasn't when it came to the deeper stuff. And I know what you're thinking.

• 46:29Mel Robbins?

  "Well, Mel, at least you have friends to go back to. What if I don't have any friends, or many friends?" Well, I would say this, here's where you can start. Part of warm relationships and happiness is also cultivated by social interactions, the tiny ones you have every single day. Just talk to strangers. This is a great thing to do, by the way. And there's a study that was done by the University of Chicago, that you have no clue how happy a random social interaction with a stranger can make you. You kind of inflate in your mind that it's gonna be messy to talk to other people,

• 47:10Mel Robbins?

  but you underestimate the actual benefits of talking to other people. People who talk to strangers on a train, or on a plane, or at a bus stop, or just at a coffee shop, they're much happier after they talk to the stranger, even if they don't think beforehand that they will be. You know who's great at this? My mother. I was just visiting my mom down in Florida, and when I was little, I used to think it was so annoying, but I now admire this about her. Absolutely everywhere we go, my mom talks to everybody. She talks to everybody about everything. She's constantly commenting on, "Oh, I like that sweatshirt," or "Hey, how you doing?" or "Nice day," and people stop, and they talk.

• 47:54Mel Robbins?

  And next thing you know, they've made a connection, or they're talking about a restaurant recommendation, or some... It's just amazing, and the energy is immediately boosted. And if you're not good at this, here's a great tip: always compliment somebody's nails. If somebody is waiting on you, or standing in front of you in line, or you're sitting next to them, just compliment their nails. If you see somebody reading, ask them what they're reading and if they like it. That's a simple way to compliment somebody, to open up the dialogue, and it always boosts the energy. And one of the things that I'm really concerned about, and I've talked a lot about this on the podcast, and I know the researchers at Harvard are concerned about this too,

• 48:36Mel Robbins?

  and that's remote work, everybody being at home. When we're at home, we miss out on these tiny social interactions with coworkers, with the barista, with the lady at the checkout counter, with the guy that you always see at the grocery store, with the customers that you're used to seeing come into the store. These tiny social interactions go a long way to making you feel warm. So, bottom line, relationships, relationships, relationships. Talk to that stranger in line, push yourself to reach out to people, text somebody every single day, and don't forget about reaching out to family.

• 49:20Mel Robbins?

  You kind of put family on the back burner, don't you? Because you think they're always going to be there? Make an effort. There's a lot of people in your family, maybe even cousins you haven't seen in a while, that you have a warm relationship with. But you've got to push yourself, okay? Let's make ourselves a promise that we're both going to do this. Because you got the research, and you now know why it matters. Now, I want to talk about the third aspect of happiness. And we're going to unpack this with a question from a listener named Steve.

• 49:51Speaker 04

  Hey Mel, this is Steve. Mel, I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being your authentic self, right there in front of us, changing lives. And you truly are amazing, and I really want you to know that. I was wondering today if you could talk about inner peace? And the difference between that, as opposed to material possessions, money, status, job titles, you name it? And instead, the feeling of happiness within yourself to be comfortable with? Thank you, Mel.

• 50:31Mel Robbins?

  Steve, first of all, thank you for saying such kind and heartfelt things about how I'm showing up. I really, really appreciate it. It makes me feel warm. Second, this question about happiness with yourself, inner peace, as opposed to chasing those material possessions, job titles? This is really front and center in my life right now. I have a friend who died recently, and so I've been thinking a lot about this person and what he means to me, the person that he was. How he made me feel as a friend.

• 51:17Mel Robbins?

  You know, at the end of the day, that's what truly matters, right? Not the things he owned, not his job title. I mean, you're never gonna see a hearse pulling a U-Haul to a graveyard. Because we can't take all that shit that we've been chasing down in life with us. And it truly doesn't matter. What matters is how you feel about yourself, the kind of person that you are, the quality of the relationships that you have. And the most important relationship is the one you have with yourself. And that is very closely tied to inner peace.

• 51:57Mel Robbins?

  If you're beating the hell out of yourself, if your dialogue about yourself is super negative, that's not gonna make you happy. And inner peace, the term that you used, it is defined as feeling content and secure. Dr. Daniel Gilbert, who is a professor at Harvard, he did this huge study that close to half of our waking moments are spent thinking about something other than what we are doing in the moment. And so when you talk about inner peace, study after study shows that a wandering mind, thinking ahead, worrying about what's next,

• 52:41Mel Robbins?

  "I'll be happy when this happens", not being present, that a wandering mind is deeply connected to unhappiness. Because if you're always wandering ahead, or worried about what's next, or chasing down something that hasn't happened, "I'll be happy when", you're never actually in your life. A wandering mind is the opposite of inner peace.

• 53:08Mel Robbins?

  Y mira, puedes pensar adelante, puedes mirar atrás. Es una de las cosas increíbles de ser humano. Pero cuando vives en un estado donde nunca estás presente, te roban de ti los extraordinarios momentos ordinarios de la vida. Esa paz interior, ese contento, esa seguridad, que estás bien, que estás consciente de lo que está pasando, que estás presente en ello. Y aquí es donde se vuelve aún más interesante. La investigación muestra que la cantidad de tiempo que crees que tienes para vivir, lo que forma tus prioridades ahora. Y si crees que tienes un montón de tiempo, a menudo estás pensando en el futuro. Pero no estás en el presente en este momento.

• 53:51Mel Robbins?

  Sin embargo, la investigación muestra que cuanto más cerca te acercas al final de tu vida, más empiezas a apreciar el presente. Por lo que es por desgracia el hecho de que la mayoría de nosotros digamos: "Oh, las personas más viejas son gruñidas". En realidad eso no es cierto, es un mito. La investigación muestra que la gente está más feliz en los años posteriores de su vida. ¿Por qué? Porque las personas más viejas, todos los más de 70 años, tienen mucho más probabilidades de estar presentes y no preocuparse por la mierda que nos rodean a nosotros. Están más presentes en el momento, para solo estar felices con los aspectos extraordinarios y ordinarios de la vida.

• 54:32Mel Robbins?

  Yo estaba con mis padres, es muy gracioso porque están en sus 70 años y noté que su vida es muy simple. Se levantan, se fijan, se fijan, ven a ver a sus amigos para la comida, juegan al golf, juegan a Mahjong, leen un libro, ven el atardecer, van a la casa de un amigo. Están en el momento. No necesitan algo grande para correr. Están en el momento, disfrutando el sentimiento de vivir. Quiero decir eso de nuevo. Una parte de la paz interior y estar presente y estar alerta en tu vida diaria es el sentimiento de vivir.

• 55:16Mel Robbins?

  Significa que ya no eres un piloto automático. Puedes prestar atención a lo que te aparece delante. Y la verdadera superpoder es poder hacer eso, no importa cuán viejos estés.

• 55:30Mel Robbins?

  Mindfulness just means connecting with the present moment. Inner peace is just about being present. So how can you bring this into your life? There are two ways, I'm gonna suggest that you do this, okay? Number one, when you are around other people, actually listen to them. I didn't say hear them. I said, "listen to them." There's a big difference between hearing what somebody says and listening to them. Listening to someone is when you actively give the other person the experience that

• 56:15Mel Robbins?

  you are present. And your attention is the most basic form of love that you could give somebody else. And practice listening and being present and making somebody feel like you are right there with them, nodding your head, being in the moment. It is an act of love and it is a way to cultivate mindfulness, to cultivate that warm connection. The second way that you can tap into this is that when you're doing a task, just something in your ordinary life, hyper-focus on it. I call this moving meditation. And I'll give you two examples. Number one, I love to eat nuts, okay?

• 57:00Mel Robbins?

  Little confession, I like the blistered peanuts, salted, from Trader Joe's. And I love myself some smoked almonds. So I'll grab a handful of those. And one way that I practice being present and mindful is I eat them one at a time. And I try to notice the difference in taste between one nut and another. And it's pretty surprising. Like, you eat a handful of nuts, you don't really taste a big difference of anything. You eat them one at a time, it's amazing how it pulls you into the moment. The second thing that you can do is, I love having a flower right at the The kitchen sink because I love flowers and it pulls me right in and I will stare at

• 57:45Mel Robbins?

  that flower and be in the present moment. A third way that I practice this inner peace and this cultivating the eutemonic type of happiness in my day to day life is savoring the moments. So last night I taught Oakley, our son, how to make his absolute favorite recipe, which is from the cookbook Six Seasons that my mom bought me, and it is called Beef with Lots and Lots and Lots of Onions. It is the easiest thing on the planet to make. You take a hunk of beef, you brown it, you throw some garlic in, you throw some thyme

• 58:26Mel Robbins?

  in, you throw a little butter, little wine in, and lots and lots and lots and lots of onions. That's it. And then you bake that sucker at 300 for like five hours and the whole thing melts into this soupy, messy, amazing goop where the onions disintegrate and it's like shredded beef and a French onion such and such. And we just had so much fun. I was so in it when we were cooking. And because I was in the moment, I wasn't wandering ahead, I wasn't thinking about anything else, I was with him, I was happy.

• 59:09Mel Robbins?

  And so let's go back to our metaphor. Being in the present moment is a lot like walking on the beach. Whether it's a stormy day or the ocean is still, whether it's raining or the sun is rising or the sun is setting, or there are amazing waves that you want to surf. When you're walking on the beach, a great walk is one where you are fully present. You feel the sand between your toes, the wind in your hair, the salt on your skin, you're staring at the ocean and gazing at the beauty, no matter what kind of day it is.

• 59:50Mel Robbins?

  You're not thinking ahead, you're not reflecting on the past, you're just in the moment, happy.

• 59:59Mel Robbins?

  That's what happiness is. And so, when you are thinking about happiness, always come back to this metaphor, because it embodies 84 years of research and studies around the world. The waves remind you to have fun. Get off that blanket of yours, grab your friends, and jump in the waves and play. The big, still ocean, swimming, floating, it reminds you to get into the deep end, and it's way more fun in there if you're floating around with your friends. Nothing like a warm day. You want those warm relationships. Spend more time with them.

• 1:00:43Mel Robbins?

  Invite them to the beach with you. That's who you want, on the sand, on the towels, in the water with you, the people that make you feel warm. And finally, walking on the beach, being present, being in the moment, constantly coming back to these three fundamental things. And the fact is, you never know how much time you have. You just don't. So, now more than ever, I just want you to not only appreciate the moment, I want you to take these small steps to truly enjoy the moment and be happier in your life.

• 1:01:27Mel Robbins?

  And in case no one else tells you, I want to be sure to say, I love you, I believe in you, and I believe in your ability to create a happier, more fulfilling, and fucking fun life. Now go do it.

• 1:01:54Mel Robbins?

  Oh, one more thing. It's the legal language. This podcast is presented solely for educational and entertainment purposes. It is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, professional coach, psychotherapist, or other qualified professional.

• 1:02:21Mel Robbins?

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• 1:03:06Mel Robbins?

  through SoFi Bank, N.A., member FDIC. Nearly 50 years after Stephen King's Carrie became a cultural phenomenon, Mike Flanagan is reimagining the iconic story for a new generation. Now, the new series honors the legacy of the original Carrie, but it's asking the question, are we watching the origin of a hero, a villain, or something far more complicated? And in this modern social media age, Carrie's new story resonates more than ever. You don't want to miss it. Carrie is streaming October 7th only on Prime Video.