20 Secrets of Adulthood
06 May 2025

20 Secrets of Adulthood

The Art of Manliness

About

Figuring out the pitfalls and best practices of adulthood can be tricky. It's helpful to have some pearls of wisdom to guide you along the way.

My guest today has spent decades collecting these kinds of helpful truths and has crafted her own guiding mantras of maturity.

Gretchen Rubin is the author of numerous bestselling books, including The Happiness Project, and her latest, Secrets of Adulthood. Today on the show, Gretchen shares how she came to write hundreds of aphorisms on how to navigate life, and we dig into some of my favorites of these concise, sage sayings. Amongst many topics, we discuss why "happiness doesn't always make us feel happy," the best strategy for changing ourselves, a very useful heuristic for making decisions, why you should wear a favorite sweater more often, and even why big top tables at restaurants are one of my pet peeves.

Resources Related to the Podcast
    Gretchen's booksGretchen's "What's the next new habit that will make you happier?" quizAoM Article: The Self-Deception Destroying Maxims of Francois de La RochefoucauldAoM Article: Nietzsche’s 66 Best AphorismsAoM Article: Just Go to SleepSunday Firesides: Life Is for Living
Connect With Gretchen Rubin
    Gretchen's websiteGretchen on IGGretchen on FBGretchen on LinkedIn