The holidays are supposed to be a time of joy. But all too often, the darker, colder days of winter,... more

It's Giving Tuesday - a time when many people donate to charity (using websites like this: givingmultiplier.org/happiness). Giving money to... more

It's the season of giving: colorful paper and shiny bows, sure, and charitable giving, too. In this special episode, Jacob... more

It's Happiness Lab's fifth birthday - so as part of the celebration we're playing some of Dr Laurie's favorite episodes.... more

To celebrate five years of The Happiness Lab, Dr Laurie has picked out the five episodes she loves the most.... more

Happiness Lab is five years old. To mark our birthday, Dr Laurie has picked her favorite five episodes from the... more

To mark the podcast's fifth birthday, Dr Laurie is revisiting some of her favorite episodes. And this show - Working... more

The Happiness Lab debuted back in fall 2019. To celebrate our fifth birthday, we're revisiting Dr Laurie's favorite shows. We... more

We're bringing you an episode of Fixable, where Laurie joined Frances Frei and Anne Morriss to discuss whether you can... more

We can spend a lot of time working - and it gives us fulfillment, social interaction and fun - but... more

You can't alway win at work. We all have career setbacks and disappointments - and learning how to deal with... more

The biggest names in wellness podcasting - "The Titans of Happiness" - come together to talk about the greatest mental... more

We often assume that we can’t fix the big problems we see in the world around us. And that trying... more

It feels like our world is deeply polarized. We seem to fundamentally disagree with so many people - and with... more

Some people think they need to be ruthless and selfish to thrive and survive in life. The theories of Charles... more

It’s hard to stay hopeful these days. Stanford professor Jamil Zaki has been studying the incredible depth of human kindness... more

It's hard to stay hopeful sometimes. Things can look pretty bleak and divided, especially around election time. But if you're... more

We're bringing you an episode of Immigrantly, where Laurie joined host Saadia Khan to discuss the psychology of happiness education... more

America's top athletes need coaches. And those coaches themselves need guidance. It's a hard and stressful job - and one... more

Georgia Bell was a great runner as a child - but in college she fell out of love with the... more

Making shows about her own happiness challenges was both fun and instructive for Dr Laurie, but it also took guts... more

Dr Laurie HATES thinking about her own death. It's scary, creepy and morbid, right? Wrong. Thinking about our finite lives... more

By 2030 we'll only work 15 hours a week, predicted the legendary economist John Maynard Keynes back in 1930. He... more

We often do things now that will make our lives more difficult or stressful in the future. We spend money,... more

Awe reduces stress, helps us forget our minor worries and makes us feel more connected to the people around us.... more

Dr Laurie is stressed, and it's harming her health. Constant worry and stress is bad for our bodies and our... more

Dr Laurie HATES boredom! Since childhood she's found it so painful that she'll do anything to avoid being bored. She'll... more

Holding yourself to impossibly high standards is self-defeating and makes for a miserable life. Can Dr Laurie Santos find ways... more

Sometimes the happiness teacher flunks her own class. In a deeply personal new season, Dr Laurie Santos opens up about... more

Liz Dunn is a regular guest on The Happiness Lab, but in this extended interview with TED's Chris Anderson she... more

A chance to hear a recent episode of A Slight Change of Plans in which Maya Shankar asks psychologist Adam... more

Work is a worry. Are we paid enough? Should we be getting promoted quicker? Is artificial intelligence about to replace... more

Technology is amazing! We can make video calls, find facts in an instant and watch movies on our phones. We... more

Karen Guggenheim was devastated by the death of her husband, Ricardo. She was alive, but dead to the world around... more

Medical doctors are waking up to the importance of happiness, partly prompted by the work of people like Rangan Chatterjee.... more

The US is sliding down the world happiness rankings - but it's the unhappiness of young people that's really dragging... more

Age is the main risk factor for cognitive decline. So with more people around the world living longer, cases of... more

There are certain nations which always top the rankings in the World Happiness Report. What are they doing right, that... more

The Happiness Lab’s Dr. Laurie Santos brings together other Pushkin hosts to mark the International Day of Happiness. Revisionist History’s... more

We often think adding more things to our lives will make us happier - more trips, more activities, more possessions.... more

Fairy tales and Hollywood rom coms have taught us to expect perfection from a soul mate, but sex and relationships... more

Some people ask searching questions and then really listen to the replies. These so-called supercommunicators make great romantic partners, so... more

No matter how much you love your partner, your relationship will never be totally free from disagreement. And nor should... more

Some people are just good at building and maintaining healthy partnerships. In their 'Love Lab", the married researchers Dr John... more

Does happiness have a scent? Dr Laurie has been trying to remove the bad smells in her life and bring... more

Busy scientist Adam Aron had too much on his plate to think deeply about climate change - until he read... more

We often think of fighting climate change as a drain on our happiness - it'll mean sacrificing the things we... more

Humans are great at reacting to mortal danger... but only sometimes. Unfortunately, some risks to our safety and wellbeing don't... more

Time off work is vital for your happiness. So what would you do if you couldn't take the same rest... more

Enjoy this episode of another show you might like: the Build the Life You Want Super Soul Podcast. Oprah and... more

Have we created a culture where young people prioritize good grades, social media likes and constant hustling over the important... more

For our ancient ancestors food was just another thing they needed to survive - like sleep, shelter or warmth. But... more

Laurie's former student and friend, Dr. Maya Shankar, has a Pushkin podcast we love called A Slight Change of Plans.... more

YOU can boost your happiness and transform the lives of people in one African village with a cash gift by going... more

We're distrustful, unequal and isolated. That's according to the figures showing a decline in happy community feeling since the 1960s.... more

Cheers was a sitcom hit in the 80s thanks to a theme tune promising that the fictional bar was a... more

Work and friendship don't mix, thought Katherine Hu. A recent graduate, she found it harder to form bonds with colleagues... more

Jia Jiang dreamed of being the next Bill Gates... but an entrepreneur needs the courage and confidence to ask for... more

Jessica Pan hated social gatherings - she cried when her friends threw her a surprise birthday party, and was even... more

When did you last check in on a friend? Maybe the last time you did, their reply was terse or... more

Connecting with people is a sure-fire way to be happier - and you can quickly build relationships with friends and... more

It's not always easy being a podcast host. Dr Laurie is stressed, making mistakes and blaming herself. When things go... more

You don't need to be 8 feet tall like Big Bird to have big, big feelings. We all experience emotions... more

It's never too early or too late to learn how to be happier. Whether you're aged 3, 23 or 103,... more

Oprah Winfrey and Arthur Brooks want you to be happier - so the TV megastar and the Harvard academic teamed... more

Am I a fun person? That was the question listener Natalie Robinson was asking herself. The answer was sobering. Natalie... more

Listener Natalie Robinson was worried she and her fellow running club members weren't having enough fun - life was just... more

Natalie Robinson used to have fun - taking her kids to the zoo or the waterpark - but recently life... more

Recovering from a car crash that smashed her face, listener Rebecca Kaduru stumbled across an episode of The Happiness Lab... more

Rebecca Kaduru was driving home... then woke up in an ambulance. She'd been in involved in an accident and her... more

What do you do when you enter "survival mode"? How can you become better at forging social connections? Can you... more

Not matter if you're aged three or 103, you can learn to be happier using pretty much the same strategies.... more

More than a third of us admit to having had a spiritual experience. We might have been profoundly moved by... more

Who do we volunteer to run a gruelling half-marathon? Who do we expect to give up sugar, or quit drinking?... more

When Marty Seligman started his long scientific career, psychologists concentrated on studying "misery and suffering" and what made people sad.... more

Happiness expert Gretchen Rubin was warned that her eyesight was in peril. It shocked her into realising she'd taken all... more

Are you seeing what you look at? Or tuning in to the noises all around you? We take our senses... more

Laurie swaps seats in the studio to be interviewed by none other than Katie Couric. In this episode of Next... more

Following 9/11, Simran Jeet Singh's Sikh family in Texas was subjected to extreme racist abuse. And yet, Simran's father chose... more

Educator and author Simran Jeet Singh is Sikh. Most of his fellow Americans have no idea what Sikhism is -... more

We often think of yoga as a physical exercise - but a centuries-old Sanskrit text, The Yoga Sutras, share teachings... more

In Virgil's epic poem, The Aeneid, few Trojans survive the destruction of their city at the hands of their Greek... more

Achilles has anger issues. The great Greek warrior sits out most of the Trojan War because he's angrily sulking. When... more

The Greek thinker Socrates was put to death for encouraging his students to question everything - from their own beliefs... more

Question everything... that's a key insight from the great Greek philosopher Socrates. We may think we know ourselves and what... more

We're surrounded by noise. That "noise" can be actual sounds - but also other annoyances and distractions that make it... more

We can put huge amounts of physical and emotional energy into our jobs - even basing our self-worth on our... more

Lots of us hit the gym in January to get fit - but should we also be exercising our minds... more

Everyone has a view about what you should eat and how much. We're so bombarded with fad diets, fasting plans... more

We're often looking into the future... hunting for the "next big thing". That could be an exciting new job or... more