Happier at Home (2012) is a guide to transforming your home into a sanctuary that reflects your family’s personality. By helping you identify both your and your family’s needs, this book gives you everything you need to start changing your home and family life for the better.
Gretchen Rubin is a highly acclaimed author and the host of Happier with Gretchen Rubin, a podcast about positive habits and happiness. Her books include Better than Before and The Happiest Project.
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Start free trialHappier at Home (2012) is a guide to transforming your home into a sanctuary that reflects your family’s personality. By helping you identify both your and your family’s needs, this book gives you everything you need to start changing your home and family life for the better.
Get ready to start a nine-month project of happiness!
Each month, you’ll focus on a different principle that can make your life at home more enjoyable. If you stick to it, this nine-month plan will have you enjoying your everyday routines and cherishing nearly every moment. Sound good?
Then let’s get started!
Creating a happier family is all about adapting your home to both your needs and the needs of each and every family member living there. For example, one particularly creative family with four children installed climbing ropes and monkey bars in their hallway. This made being at home all the more enjoyable – for both the kids and the parents!
But before you can create a happier home, you need to figure out what needs changing. There are four things that will help you do that:
First, you have to find out what makes you feel good at home. Is it the pictures or trinkets that remind you of your family? The smell? The lighting?
Next, figure out the primary factors that make you feel bad at home. It could be anything, from major disturbances to a scary painting in your bedroom that keeps you awake at night.
Third, ask yourself how you can feel right more often – that is, how you can develop a lifestyle, home and routine that reflect your values and align with what’s important to you.
Finally, search for ways to develop an atmosphere of growth at home, an approach to life that keeps you focused on maintaining a go-get-’em attitude even after you’ve accomplished a goal. For instance, if something breaks in your home, you shouldn’t just fix it, but also adjust your behavior so that the problem doesn’t arise over and over again.
Now that you understand the fundamental goals of the nine-month project, our remaining blinks will explore exactly which actions you should take during that time.