Begin 2026 with More Joy (Happier with Gretchen Rubin)

Summary

Episode Summary: Begin 2026 with More Joy (with Gretchen Rubin)

Podcast: The Dan Buettner Podcast
Episode Title: Begin 2026 with More Joy (Happier with Gretchen Rubin)
Date: December 25, 2025
Host: Dan Buettner
Guests: Gretchen Rubin & Elizabeth Craft

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Main Theme & Purpose

This special episode features Dan Buettner in conversation with Gretchen Rubin and her sister Elizabeth Craft, co-hosts of the "Happier" podcast, for a New Year's special centered on powerful ways to begin the new year with intention, joy, and self-reflection. The focus is on choosing a "one word theme" for 2026—a guiding word or phrase that distills one’s aspirations into an inspirational anchor for decisions and personal growth throughout the year. The conversation offers practical tips, personal anecdotes, and memorable exchanges about finding more joy, resilience, and meaning in the coming year.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power of a One Word Theme

[04:21]

• Concept Explanation: Choosing a single word or short phrase as the year’s theme helps clarify intentions and serves as a guiding north star. This complements other annual planning exercises (like "26 for 26" goals lists).
• Qualities of a Good Word Theme:
  • Multiple layers of meaning (e.g., 'novel' meant writing a novel and seeking new experiences).
  • Visual symbols reinforce memory (mugs, jewelry, T-shirts).
  • Positivity and momentum over blandness.
  • Concrete, vivid language is more impactful than abstract words.
• Past Examples Shared:
  • Elizabeth Craft: Free, Style, Hot Wheels, Novel, Home, Control, Lighter, Butterfly, Step, Book, Bounce.
  • Gretchen Rubin: Upgrade, Bigger, Lighten Up, Repurpose, Delegate, Infrastructure, Growth, Open, Salt, Wave, Door.

2. Reviewing 2025 Themes & Their Impacts

[06:57]

• Elizabeth's 2025 Theme (“Bounce”):
  • Chosen for positivity and fun ("It's almost a goofy word" – Gretchen Rubin, 07:09).
  • Symbolized by a kangaroo—resilient, always moving forward, energetic.
  • Helped her focus on physical activity, career resilience post-Hollywood strike, and “bouncing into the future.”
• Gretchen's 2025 Theme (“Door”):
  • Chosen for its symbolism around transition, openness, hospitality, and return.
  • Inspired by her personal “season of the open door”—the empty nest rebranded as new possibility.
  • Received a physical door symbol (a frame with a knocker) from a reader, making the theme tangible.

3. Unveiling 2026 Themes

[16:25]

• Elizabeth’s 2026 Word: “X-ray”

  • “Once this came to me, I immediately knew that was the word.” (Elizabeth, 17:24)
  • Meanings:
    • Looking inward for peace and happiness (“I really want to look within.” – 17:42)
    • Looking ahead and seeing the future of Hollywood (“I want to have X-ray vision for the future.” – 18:03)
    • Deepening perception: seeing beyond the surface, understanding underlying trends (“It's also about seeing below surfaces or not getting distracted by what's on the top, but really penetrating to what is the essence...” – Gretchen, 18:47)
  • Symbol: A simple “X,” which also represents ‘X marks the spot’ for treasure and a kiss in letter-writing. Plans to get an “X” ring as a talisman.
  • Memorable Quote:
    • “To me, X-ray vision has a feel of the future.” (Elizabeth, 18:36)
    • “It just keeps going. And that is the mark of a really good one word theme—multiple layers, many contexts.” (Gretchen, 21:32)

• Gretchen’s 2026 Word: “Neighbor”

  • Inspired by a desire for deeper community and connection after realizing its resonance in 2024.
  • Goals Linked to Theme:
    • Be more engaged in her local neighborhood—remembering neighbors, connecting beyond small talk.
    • Foster human-level, cross-cultural connections (“I want to be friendlier and more open to strangers. I want to open myself up to the world... Love your neighbor as yourself.” – Gretchen, 24:31)
    • Embrace cultural curiosity, broad-mindedness, and willingness to tolerate disagreement.
    • “I feel like neighbor is what is called for now. I feel like the energy and focus that I want to put out into the world is neighbor.” (Gretchen, 23:01)
  • Possible Visual Symbols Discussed:
    • Mr. Rogers references (cardigan, trolley).
    • “Cup of sugar” (as a neighborly gesture).
    • “Welcome mat,” tying to her 2025 theme “door” (“I could literally get a welcome mat that says ‘welcome.’ Yes, that would be good... It ties to door.” – Gretchen, 32:51)
    • Call for listener suggestions.

4. Symbols and Artifacts in Habit Formation

[08:53]

• Creating or finding visual reminders of one’s word (mug with kangaroo, welcome mat, bee ring) reinforces theme and sparks daily mindfulness.
• Artifacts act as continuity markers, carrying personal meaning year after year.

5. Team Themes

[34:41]

• Elizabeth’s Team (with Sarah): “Flower and Fly 2025—Bee as the symbol, hive meetups.”
• Gretchen’s Team: “Distill”—focus on extracting essentials and meaning for 2026, visually imagined as classic lab beakers.
• Both encourage teams to create their own shared themes to foster group focus.

6. Listener & Community Connection

[35:23]

• Listeners are invited to submit their own word themes and stories of how these guided their year.
• Encouragement to borrow and share themes for collective inspiration.

7. New Year’s Eve Hack

[38:58]

• Listener Misty’s tradition: small, meaningful New Year with a few close friends, drawing tarot cards for each month, reflecting on past and future, comfort food and wine.
• “It still feels like a party because it's a tradition we've done for several years in a row.” (Misty, 39:08)
• Affirmation that a “party spirit” is more essential than guest count and that rituals create significance.

8. Happiness Demerit & Gold Star

[40:15]

• Demerit: Gretchen forgetting to write down a great idea at night—repeats her lesson: “There is no idea that is so big that you will not forget it. That is just the truth.” (Gretchen, 41:26)
• Gold Star: Elizabeth recommends “Squid Game: The Challenge” on Netflix for its originality and binge-worthiness.

9. Resources & Reading

[42:47]

• Gretchen promotes her gift idea generator worksheet for meaningful gifting.
• Reading updates: Elizabeth’s daily “War and Peace”; Gretchen’s “Like Effect” by Cynthia Dupree Sweeney.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Theme Selection:
  • “I love this, Gretchen.” (Elizabeth, on the yearly word tradition, 05:21)
  • “If it was important to you one year, it's probably important to you forever.” (Gretchen, on keeping symbols, 09:41)
• On Multiple Meanings:
  • “To me, X-ray vision has a feel of the future... It's envisioning the future but at the same time being good with what is.” (Elizabeth, 18:36)
  • “That is the mark of a really good one word theme—is that it has multiple layers of meaning and can be invoked in many different contexts.” (Gretchen, 21:32)
• On Community:
  • “I feel like the energy and focus that I want to put out into the world is neighbor.” (Gretchen, 23:01)
  • “Every state is glorious in its own way.” (Elizabeth, 30:50)
  • “It's more like the party spirit is the party spirit.” (Gretchen, 39:54)
• On Rituals:
  • “What I love about it is I'll keep it probably forever, and it'll always remind me of the word bounce.” (Elizabeth, regarding her kangaroo mug, 08:53)
  • “My daughters will often pull out one of our many photo books at random and pore over the photos from the previous years. It's always fun to scroll through the photos of the previous year and be reminded of all our adventures.” (Gretchen, 42:23)
• On Ideas:
  • “There is no idea that is so big that you will not forget it. That is just the truth.” (Gretchen, 41:26)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Word Theme Introduction: 04:21
• Past Year Themes Recap: 06:57
• Elizabeth’s 2026 Word: 16:25
• Gretchen’s 2026 Word: 21:47
• Symbols & Artifacts: 08:53, 32:51
• Team Themes: 34:41
• Listener Invitation: 35:23
• New Year’s Eve Hack: 38:58
• Demerit/Gold Star: 40:15
• Resource/Reading: 42:47

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Tone

Warm, encouraging, reflective, and occasionally playful—featuring sisterly banter, thoughtful insights, and genuine excitement about new beginnings.

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For Listeners Who Haven’t Tuned In

Whether you’re a fan of Gretchen Rubin, Dan Buettner, or seeking inspiration for a fresh start in 2026, this conversation offers accessible wisdom on designing a joyful, purposeful year via a simple yet profound practice. Through personal stories and practical advice, you’ll learn how a single word can serve as a powerful compass—and the process might even spark your own “aha!” word for the year ahead.

Transcript

[Gretchen Rubin]

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[Elizabeth Craft]

Lemonade.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Hello and welcome to Happier, a podcast where we talk about becoming happier. This week we will talk about choosing your one word theme for the year. We will review our experiences with our Word for this year and reveal our words for next year. Plus, we share a hack for a fun and original way to celebrate the new year. I'm Gretchen Rubin, a writer who studies happiness, good habits, human nature. I'm in a home office and joining me today from Los Angeles is my sister Elizabeth Craft. And Elizabeth, I love picking our one word themes for the year. I love hearing what your choice is.

[Elizabeth Craft]

That's me, Elizabeth Craft, a TV writer and producer living in la. And yes Gretchen, I have come up with my word. I was having trouble as you know, but I landed on it and I'm very passionate about it. Excellent.

[Gretchen Rubin]

But before we jump in, we got a few updates and this one is a Five Senses update. So I particularly love this because of course ever since I wrote Life in Five Senses, I love anything related to the Five Senses. Ashley writes, I recently needed a hair product with more hold for my 4 year old son and found some old Herbal Essence spray gel from the back of the bathroom cabinet. After spraying it on my son's hair, my 7 year old daughter said, I smell a memory. She remembers the scent from when I used to use it on her hair when she was younger. It tickled me and made me think of you so I had to share. I love that.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I love.

[Gretchen Rubin]

What a fun thing to say. I smell a memory. That's such a beautiful way to put that.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I love it. And Gretchen Jane had something to say about taking the trip. We had to try this at home which was take the trip she said. At 7:30am the sky is starting to lighten with a rosy color over the red tile roofs. Reminds me of the rosy finger dawn from the Odyssey. A new day and a fresh and young beginning of what is to come. I'm listening to your podcast at my kitchen table in my small apart hotel. Never heard that, Gretch. I guess it's an apartment hotel.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah, that's cool. A part hotel. Okay.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Apart hotel. I have just started to take my trip. I am in Provence for six weeks to study French and explore the area through Rhodes Scholar for the last 20 years. Plus, if you asked what I wanted to do in the next five years, I would have said to live for a period of time overseas. I I'm in my 70s now. I lost my cousin a few years ago. I thought I was only inheriting two quilts our grandmother made, but I also received a small inheritance that I never expected. It's taken me three years to decide what to do with it. International education was very important to her and she left most of her money to the university where she taught to the international education program. I decided this was a way to honor her and to honor myself, I also decided to take this trip by myself. My husband walked the camino by himself 10 years ago. This is my Camino. Your podcast came at a perfect time to reinforce my decision. I also love your mantra. Scheduling is life. I'm learning somewhat late how important this is.

[Gretchen Rubin]

This is so wonderful. I love this.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Such a great way, as she said, to honor her cousin and herself.

[Gretchen Rubin]

That's such a great reminder. Take the trip. So this week our try this at home suggestion is to choose your one word theme for the year. Now, choosing the one word theme for the year is part of the design your year set. So there's the yearly challenge. This year we had read 25 and 25 and we've had rest and walk and go outside. And then there's making the yearly list like the 25 for 25 list that we've done for several years. And we will be talking about our ideas for 2026 in the upcoming episodes. Super fun to reveal those now. Elizabeth, have you finalized your 26 for 26 list yet?

[Elizabeth Craft]

No, I have not.

[Gretchen Rubin]

No. I have way more than 26 items. So I'm going to have to like buckle down and figure out what I want to do. But this week we're talking about the one word theme. And this is when you identify kind of your overarching aim for the next year, what you want the year to hold. And you summarize it in a word or a phrase.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. I love this, Gretchen.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes. And over the years, we have found a couple things about picking the one word theme. First of all, it's great if it has multiple levels of meaning. When you pick novel, and it was partly because you wanted to work on a novel, writing a novel, but you also wanted to do new things.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes.

[Gretchen Rubin]

So it had multiple meanings. It's great when it's something that can be visualized or if you find a way to interpret it visually so that you can have a mug or a piece of jewelry or a T shirt that helps remind you of your one word theme. And the most important thing is that it captures some aspect of what you want the future year to hold for you.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. And I like it to be a positive word or a word that, to me, feels positive and like having momentum as opposed to a just blah word.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah. And along those lines, I think that a concrete word is much more powerful than an abstract word. The more abstract it is, I think it just doesn't have the same punch.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes.

[Gretchen Rubin]

But so, Elizabeth, so let's go over some of our previous years. So what have you had in previous years?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yeah, so I had Free time style, Hot Wheels. That was the year I got a car novel, as you said. Home Control Number six. That was related to being diabetic. Yeah. Lighter butterfly. That was after Covid, when I wanted to be a social butterfly.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes. Right.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Step and book.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes.

[Elizabeth Craft]

And then this year, Gretch, I had bounce.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes. So remind us of why you chose Bounce.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Well, bounce I like, because again, it's a very fun, positive word.

[Gretchen Rubin]

It's almost a goofy word.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Gretch. So many people wanted me to use Tigger as my symbol, you know, because Tigger bounces.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes, that's right.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I just don't relate to Tigger, so that didn't work for me. Okay. But here are some of the things about bounce. It referred to me doing more cardio at Orange Theory. Bouncing up and down on the treadmill.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Because on your 25 for 25, you had that. You wanted to do Orange Theory how many times?

[Elizabeth Craft]

A hundred times.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Wow. Okay. So that's a lot of bouncing.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Still working on it.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I also wanted to bounce back in the Hollywood situation because, you know, Hollywood has taken a tumble. So working on bouncing back.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah. After the strike and all that. Yeah.

[Elizabeth Craft]

And then I like the idea of bouncing into the future. Cause, you know, I have that thing I say of step into the future, but I thought, well, bouncing into the future is even better.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes. I Think a lot of what you wanted was resilience, but the word resilience is not fun. And it's also kind of overused. And it's very abstract bounce. There's an airiness to it. There's an energy to it. There's a positivity to it. That's very exciting.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. And then, Gretchen, I landed on a kangaroo for myself. Symbol for bounce. Because obviously, kangaroos bounce also like that. They box, so they punch their way forward. And many listeners said, although it turns out not to be strictly true, that kangaroos only move forward, which, who knew, right? So that's a fun thing too. So that turned out to be a great symbol. And I got a beautiful handmade mug with a kangaroo on it. And what I love about it is I'll keep it probably forever, and it'll always remind me of the word bounce.

[Gretchen Rubin]

It's funny. Elizabeth, whenever I come to your house, I'm like, let's clear the clutter in your office. This was your team theme, ROAR24. And I gave you that bookmark with the lion on it. You have all of these artifacts around, and I do, too. But I guess I notice them more when I'm at your place, because when it's your own stuff, there is a worry that things just fade into the background because you're so used to them. But when I see something in your house, I'm like, oh, I remember. Lightning bolt.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. One thing I have paid more attention to in recent times is to choose something with my symbol that I do want to keep because I like having those artifacts. So I wanna get something nice. Like last year, for Christmas, I got Sarah a really nice little tray from John Darien with her feather symbol. And I'm sure she'll keep that. And it's just kind of a nice continuity thing.

[Gretchen Rubin]

If it was important to you one year, it's probably important to you forever. One of the points of having these artifacts is to visually remind you of this. Aim for yourself. So when you see the kangaroo, you'll remember, Okay, I wanna bounce. I wanna be resilient. I wa to have that airiness. I want to step into the future. It carries all those ideas with it. Yes.

[Elizabeth Craft]

But how about you, Gretchen? Let's go over some of your words and your word of 2025.

[Gretchen Rubin]

So I have to say, Elizabeth, I learned from you over the years, because I had years where they were pretty boring and dull, and then I caught from you how to do a better job. So I think my more recent ones are better than my earlier ones. So I had upgrade, bigger, lighten up, repurpose, delegate, infrastructure, growth, Open, Salt, Wave, and revisited. And the fact is, all of these really were important to me. As I see them, I'm like, I still talk about repurposing all the time. It's a huge aim of mine and it's super important, but it's not so interesting.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes, I love salt and wave are my 2 favorite of yours.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Well, speaking of the visual symbol, I picked the Great Wave, which is turns out to be the most reproduced artwork in the world right now. You know, the Great Wave by Hakusai. So whenever I would see it in the world, I would be reminded, oh, it's the wave. And people would send me, oh, what about this LEGO set? And what about this coloring book? It was a very fun thing to tap into. And of course it would remind me of my one word theme. And then I love salt. I have a really almost mystical reverence for salt that came out of writing life in five senses and understanding. Like how truly extraordinary salt is, this magical substance. And so now I feel like even when I see a salt shaker in a diner, I'm like, I give respect to salt. So that was a really powerful word too.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Love that. And then what was your word this year?

[Gretchen Rubin]

So this year I debated and debated between stone and door. And I do love stone. Like stone is a really powerful word. But in the end, I pick door because of course, I'm in the season of the open door, which is my rebranding of the empty nest. And to me, the word door is I can go out into the world and I can also come back. It's a word of hospitality, but it's also a word of refuge. It's a word of transition. Because I'm in a transition time, it's very physical. Like, I think doors are really interesting in mythology. Doors, thresholds, transitions, crossroads. These are often considered to be places of great power and danger and opportunity. And so it's been interesting for me to just explore the door ness of it. And so I really enjoyed that symbol. I think it was a really good symbol for me for this year. But most of all because of open door.

[Elizabeth Craft]

And did you end up picking like one door as your personal symbol for the year or was it just all doors?

[Gretchen Rubin]

You know, I was sort of hoping that I would find a physical thing. And I have to say, on my book tour, gold, gold, gold star. Some reader gave me a frame door with a knocker. And it just stands. And I'm like, very excited. I'M gonna set it up on a bookcase. I have a whole place set up for it. I haven't done it yet because of reasons that became a visual symbol and that just magically came to me during my book tour for Secrets of Adulthood. So I did actually get a physical thing that sits on a shelf that is the door. But I didn't find a necklace or, you know, a tote bag or a mug or something like that because door is just a part of something. So I was very excited to get that.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. And now when you see it, you'll remember that.

[Gretchen Rubin]

No. And I'll have it out for the rest of my life.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Door is one I could see myself borrowing in the future when Jack goes to college.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes, that's true. Yes. You're welcome to share. Thank you.

[Elizabeth Craft]

All right, Gretch. Coming up, we are going to reveal our words for 2026. But first, this break.

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[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay, Elizabeth, what is your word for 2026 and for people who don't remember, explain how you were having trouble. You usually don't have trouble, but this year you did.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes, Gretchen, I was talking on More happier about how I was having trouble coming up with my word. I don't know why. Normally a word just appears to me and it's very clear and I know what it is. This year I really had to think about, okay, what do I want and how do I want to represent that? I told you I considered the word beauty because I wanted to one, look better and two, appreciate the beauty around me. But again, beauty is such a kind of generic word. Didn't feel right.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Right.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Didn't quite get to where I wanted to go.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Did you have like a long list that you were considering or was it like, no, you were just coming up with them one at a time?

[Elizabeth Craft]

No, I didn't have a long list at all. I was just coming up with them one at a time. And then once this came to me, I immediately knew that was the word.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay, so what is.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Is X ray?

[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay, explain. I love it. It's so concrete and it's from a whole different part of the world of symbols. So what is the X ray? What does that mean?

[Elizabeth Craft]

So X ray is because I really want to look within.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Ooh.

[Elizabeth Craft]

And find my peace, my happiness, all of that. I really want to look within. And that was sort of the beauty of it. You know, I wanted to appreciate beauty, but I really want to look within. Inward.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Interesting.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Which I often don't do, despite the fact that, you know, we're always analyzing everything.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah.

[Elizabeth Craft]

So I want to be good with self, which is looking inward. But then I also want to have X ray vision for the future, especially the future of Hollywood. I want to be able to look ahead and see what's happening and act accordingly.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Ah.

[Elizabeth Craft]

What I love is that it's two opposites, which is looking within. But Then also looking out and ahead.

[Gretchen Rubin]

That's so interesting because it has to do with deepening perception, the perception that's going on inside yourself, but then it's also the perception of what's going out into the world.

[Elizabeth Craft]

To me, X ray vision has a feel of future. Right. Like, again, bouncing into the future. It's envisioning the future, but at the same time being good with what is.

[Gretchen Rubin]

But it's also about seeing below surfaces or not getting distracted by what's on the top, but really penetrating to what is the essence or what are the deeper trends, or what does it all mean? How are you diagnosing what's going on so that you're responding properly? My whole thing is identify the problem. And this is one of the things I'm writing about in my open door book, which is if you don't identify the problem, you can't come up with the correct solution. And so it's really important to understand what's going on so that you can take the right action. And as you're navigating the changes in Hollywood, are you diagnosing what's happening?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes, that is a great point.

[Gretchen Rubin]

It's funny, I was hearing a futurist talk and he said what we do as futurists is we don't think about the future at all. We only try to understand very clearly what is happening right now. He said most people don't really understand what's happening right now. And if you understand what's happening right now, you have a much better handle on what might happen in the future. And I thought that was so interesting because it is. It's really hard to understand what is happening right now.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Oh, that's so interesting.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Well, what is the symbol gonna be?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Okay, well, it's not going to be an X ray, if that's what anyone is thinking.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay. It's like a broken bone or like a spoon inside somebody's stomach or something.

[Elizabeth Craft]

That's not fun. It is an X. And that X stands to me. In addition for X ray, it's X marks the spot. And X is also a kiss, which I like because that's a very positive thing. A kiss.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes.

[Elizabeth Craft]

One of my symbols this year was a B because Sarah and I had a team theme, which was flower and fly 20, 25. And our symbol was a B, and I got a B ring. So I've been looking at X rings, of which there are a selection. So I want to get a nice ring that is in the shape of an X. And I think that'll be a really nice visual reminder that I can wear. I like wearing my visual reminders in big meetings. Like, I wear my B ring when.

[Gretchen Rubin]

We pitch as, like, a good luck symbol.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Yeah. Yes. It becomes a talisman. So I'm very exc about it after having had trouble with it. Now I'm all about my one word theme and my symbol.

[Gretchen Rubin]

I feel like it's so imaginative. That is just not a word or a concept that I would have ever thought of in this context. And it has that multiple layers of meaning. Oh, you know what always makes me. Well, maybe this is X marks the spot. But when I think of an X, I also think of, like, a treasure map where X is where the treasure is.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes.

[Gretchen Rubin]

This is the place to focus. Or this is the place where you'll find what you're looking for.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Oh, I love that. Yes. The treasure map. See, it just keeps going.

[Gretchen Rubin]

It just keeps going. And that is the mark of a really, really good one word theme, is that it has multiple layers of meaning and can be invoked in many different contexts. So that. Oh, well done, Elizabeth. It was worth the wait.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Okay, Gretch, so What is your 2026 word?

[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay, so this year I debated. I had two words that I really wanted to. I was really debating. So the first one. And I kind of think this is what I'm gonna pick next year. So, okay, this is maybe foreshadowing, but flower. Ever since I wrote Life in Five Senses, I've realized how much I love flowers. They are beautiful. There's scent, which, you know, I love the sense of smell. There's sight. It's nature. It's beautiful. I love fake flowers. I love real flowers. Should I have flower or flowers? And that I thought flower, because then it can be a noun and a verb. And I wanna grow and flourish and be beautiful and all these things. And I love that word, but it's not the word I chose. I picked the word neighbor.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I love it. Yeah.

[Gretchen Rubin]

And this was a word, and I'd forgotten this, except I was reviewing my one word themes and my annual lists. I was looking back through them, and I realized that in 2024, this was a theme that I added in along the way. And so clearly it's been in my mind for a long time. But I feel like neighbor is what is called for now. I feel like the energy and focus that I want to put out into the world is neighbor. So I've picked neighbor.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I like that, Gretchen. It's very transcendent and it's profound.

[Gretchen Rubin]

The Thing is, it's also. I'm kind of like, it's going to be a lot of work. Because one of the things that I want to do is I want to be more neighborly in my neighborhood, talk to people in my neighborhood. Like, when I'm out walking my dogs, not just saying like, oh, hi, but really try to connect, remember their dog's name. I always act like, oh, these people are never going to show up again. I'm like, yes, they are. They live in my neighborhood and they walk a dog in the morning just like I do. Or when I'm in a store or I'm at a conference, really try to engage with people. I do tend to withdraw, kind of like in my own world. I think I'm an extroverted person, but I'm not super outgoing in a neighborly way. And yet I know that it would make me happier. All the research suggests that being close to your neighbors makes you happier. Having positive encounters is energizing for introverts and extroverts alike. So having these little moments, and then also it ties into my idea of culture. You know, how I've had all these aims about my 30 days of culture and wanting to go to the museum every day. But really a big thing of culture is just trying to be interested in how other people see the world and having that expressed in an elevated and deliberate way. And so for me, neighbor is also a availing myself of that so that I do see the world through other people's eyes and I am experiencing other people's perceptions, insights, observations. I want to connect with my actual neighbors and my friends. I want to be friendlier and more open to strangers. I want to open myself up to the world to be more willing to tolerate disagreement, more open to other people's views. Love your neighbor as yourself. I really want to have that energy. I really want to go neighbor.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I think what's interesting about that, Gretchen, is that a neighbor is someone who you connect with sort of on a human level. Right. Your neighbors on your block.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes.

[Elizabeth Craft]

What you have in common is that you're humans living on this block together.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes.

[Elizabeth Craft]

But you can still keep each other's keys and bring each other casseroles. So I love that.

[Gretchen Rubin]

As the holidays get closer, I always start thinking about ways to give gifts that feel really personal, things that connect to memories or shared experiences. And that is why I love using Shutterfly. It's such a simple way to take the photos. We already have all those great moments sitting on our phones and turn them into Something lasting and meaningful. One of my favorite holiday traditions actually involves Shutterfly. Just about every year I make custom photo mugs for my parents. It's become something we all look forward to in my family. We drink a lot of coffee, so mugs are always welcome. I choose photos that capture special moments from the past 12 months, and it's always fun to look back and see how much has changed. It's such an easy gift to make, and it really brings joy every time. Every time I go home to Kansas City, we're all constantly using the mugs from across the years, so it's fun to see them still in rotation and be reminded of all the happy times we've shared. Also, as my sister Elizabeth often points out, any gift that has been personalized or customized feels especially thoughtful and meaningful. Now I also use Shutterfly to create photo books, which ties into one of my favorite happiness aims to be a storehouse of happy memories. Every year I make a yearly list tied to the year. So for example, in 2025 I made a list of 25 things I wanted to get done in 20. Every year on this list I include the item make photo albums and this will be the very first thing I add to my 26 for 26 list. Around the holidays each year, I go through the pictures on my phone and pick my favorites to put into photo books. I always have so many photos that I make multiple books. It's like a mini reflection exercise, a way to celebrate all the little moments that made the year special. I use these books as a kind of family diary of the places we went and the things we did. My daughters will often pull out one of our many photo books at random and pore over the photos from the previous years. It's always fun to scroll through the photos of the previous year and be reminded of all our adventures. This past year will feature a lot of photos of our new puppy, Taffy. The reading retreat that I took with my sister Elizabeth this summer, a family vacation to Croatia with my in laws, I'm always surprised to see just how much happens in a year. I don't have a great memory, so it makes me very happy to memorialize everything in a photo album so I don't forget about the things that have happened. And Shutterfly makes it so simple. I always use their Autofill feature, which arranges your photos automatically, but it's also easy to make changes if you want. So in just a few minutes you can create something beautiful, something you'll actually look through again and again. I have Dozens. Dozens of these photo books. That's what I love about Shutterfly. It helps you make gifts that mean something. Whether it's a mug, a photo book, or even a holiday ornament, these aren't just things you buy. They're memories you can hold. And for grandparents, friends, or anyone you want to feel close to, a photo gift is always such a heartfelt surprise. So if you are looking for a way to make your holiday gifts much more meaningful this year, Shutterfly makes it easy to create something special from the photos you already love. Make something that means something this holiday. Shop shutterfly.com happier and start customizing today. Right now, you'll get free shipping on your order with promo code Happier. This promo can be stacked with any other offer. Details are on the site. That's shutterfly.com happier promo code happier. Because the best gifts don't just mark the season. They celebrate the moments that make us happiest. But so, okay, here's this idea. Side note, this is an idea where I wish I could just make this happen, because I love this idea so much. So here's my idea, and I feel like it's very neighborhood. So we are coming up on the 250th anniversary of the United States. And if I were the boss of the world, what I would do is I would have a celebration of states. And so every month or however often, a different state would take a turn, and there would be a celebration of that state, and there would be a huge gathering where the celebrities of that state, they would perform or readers would read, singers would sing, actors would perform something. So many states have, like, a. A song that everybody in the country loves, like Sweet Home Alabama or whatever. We'd talk about their cuisine, and maybe there'd be like, a documentary that would be shown that would be, like, highlights from their history and cool tourist things to do. Who knew that you could do this in Missouri, Nebraska? It's not for everyone or whatever it might be, because I think there's so much in the states that we don't even know about in the United States. And it would get everybody really excited to travel and experience different states. We'd all learn about our history as the United States. We would all feel closer because we would all know more about other states. I would just love the neighborhood of states to feel more energized. That is my dream is to be the emcee of that, where you're just, come on down, North Dakota. It's your chance to shine. And for a month, you just Be like, whoa. Who knew there was so much cool about North Dakota?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes, every state is glorious in its own.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Every state is glorious in its own way. But so, Elizabeth, what should my visual be for neighbor?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Of course, the first thing one thinks of is Mr. Rogers.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Mr. Rogers. Cause he says, won't you be my neighbor? Which is a beautiful theme. Question, won't you be my neighbor? So in a way, that's what I'm saying to the world, won't you be my neighbor? But also, I need to be the Mr. Rogers who is inviting that.

[Elizabeth Craft]

So with Mr. Rogers, if you were using Mr. Rogers as your inspiration rather than Mr. Rogers himself, you could use a cardigan. He has an iconic cardigan. Or the trolley. He has the trolley that would come through every episode. And a trolley is a very neighborly thing.

[Gretchen Rubin]

It is a very neighborly thing. That's good. That's not an obvious symbol for neighbors. So that's interesting. Okay. I was thinking about Mr. Rogers. So that got me thinking about Sesame Street. And if you remember the song of Sesame street, it goes, come and play. Everything's a. Okay. Friendly neighbors there. That's where we meet. Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street? So there's the Sesame street neighbors. Okay. But here's another symbol, very different. A cup of sugar. Because I think of when you say, keep your keys, that's a thing neighbors do. But you also say, would you borrow a cup of sugar? And there's that great Outcast song, hey Ya, which I love. One of the lines is, lend me some sugar. I am your neighbor. I've been looking for all these incidences of neighbors. So I do think that cup of sugar is interesting. But again, you're not gonna have a ring that is a cup of sugar. You're not gonna get a T shirt that has a cup of sugar. That's not very good.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Right?

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah.

[Elizabeth Craft]

You also were thinking about a welcome mat.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Maybe a welcome mat is good. Now you're not gonna get a welcome mat T shirt, but I could literally get a welcome mat that says welcome. Yes, that would be good. I could get a dollhouse welcome mat and put it on my. The shelf by my desk. There's something kind of interesting about that. And what I like about welcome mat is it ties to door.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes, it does. Perfect transition.

[Gretchen Rubin]

People are saying, you don't want to be a doormat. So I'm not a doormat. It's a welcome mat. Very different. But then another thing that I was thinking about, neighbor is so Giving Tuesday is an organization that I love. And the whole idea of Giving Tuesday is there's Black Friday, there's Cyber Monday, and these are all about spending and buying. But Giving Tuesday is a day where you think about where are you gonna give? Because something that can happen at any time often happens at no time. So let's pick a date. It's Giving Tuesday, this year's December 2nd. And so I was thinking, for Giving Tuesday, what would I give to that would be the most neighborly? What is the neighborly organization? So I was thinking maybe a food bank maybe. That's kind of like the cup of sugar idea. You think of neighbors like the New York Common Pantry or something. But that was a good idea of how do you make a decision based on your one word theme? Right, right. If my theme is neighbor, I would make a different decision than if my theme were something like book, then I would be like, no, I'll give to the New York Public Library or whatever. So I thought that was a fun thing.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. So you're still settling on your symbol? Sounds like.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah. But I'm thinking maybe a welcome mat, that might be the best. Cause it ties to door. But I do like the way yours lends itself to the mug T shirt, jewelry. So I'm gonna keep thinking. Anyway, listeners, if you have any idea, how would you turn neighbor into a visual symbol? Now, Elizabeth, you and Sarah, you mentioned you had your team theme of flower and hive 2020. What was it?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Flower and fly 2025. And then we bee was our symbol and then we would have a hive 25, which was when we would get together and work for a day.

[Gretchen Rubin]

That's right.

[Elizabeth Craft]

And again, I think we'll keep the term hive25 because we love it.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Sure. Yeah.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Stay tuned. We'll be talking about our theme for 2026 on Happier in Hollywood. And how about you, Gretchen, does your team have a theme?

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes, our team theme is distill. So distill is to extract the essential meaning or most important aspects of something. And that relates to a lot of things that we're gonna do in 2026. So that turns out to be a really helpful team theme for us. And when I think of distill, I think of like a beaker, like a very old fashioned beaker with drops of clear liquid just dropping in, drip, drip, drip, with only the essence of something. And so I feel like that's distill. I like that word.

[Elizabeth Craft]

There's an efficiency element to the word distill.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes, there's an efficiency element. So let us know if you do try this at home. And how choosing a one word theme works for you. What did you choose last year? How did it work for you? What are you choosing for this year? We cannot get enough love to hear these words. People come up with the most imaginative terms and I think it really gets people's imaginations firing to hear what other people have chosen. And by the way, it's completely fine to use someone else's theme as your own theme. That is absolutely permitted. Let us know on Instagram threads, TikTok, Facebook. Drop us an [e-mail] or as always, you can go to the show notes. This is happiercast.com563 for everything related to this episode.

[Elizabeth Craft]

All right, Gretch. Coming up, we've got a New Year's Eve hack. But first, this break.

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[Elizabeth Craft]

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[Elizabeth Craft]

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[Gretchen Rubin]

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[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay, this hat comes from our listener, Misty. And there's a lot of people who don't enjoy a traditional New Year's Eve and she has a different way to approach it. That sounds like a lot of fun.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yeah, she said. Hey y'. All, I was just listening to the episode about different reasons to throw a party. I'm not much of a party thrower, am a bit of a homebody and an introvert. But every year for New Year's I get two or three of my closest friends together. We draw tarot cards for the upcoming year, one for each month and one card as the theme of the year. And then we review our cards from the year before. We spend time talking about our goals, our struggles and achievements. I make a huge pot of from scratch beef stew and we drink wine and just celebrate the turning of a new year. Even though there are only a few people, it still feels like a party because it's a tradition we for several years in a row. Well, Gretchen, I would love to spend my New Year's Eve this way.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yes, we had said that it took eight people to be a party, but I think maybe you don't need eight people. It's more like the party spirit is the party spirit. And I think this sounds like so much fun. I love the tradition and it's a great way to look back, look forward, which is such a great way to head into the new year.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes, Misty, we love it.

[Gretchen Rubin]

And now for demerits and gold stars.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Gretch, it's your turn this week for happiness demerit.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Okay, so this is a demerit that I've given to myself before, but I have to give it to myself again so that I remember not to do it. So I was in bed and I had a thought of something really important. And I was like, oh, this is a really important, useful idea. It's so important and so useful that there's no way I'll forget it. And Elizabeth, you can guess what happened.

[Elizabeth Craft]

You forgot.

[Gretchen Rubin]

I forgot it. I distinctly remembered having the thought, oh, this is so important that I won't forget it. And then I forgot it. And so my demerit is that I didn't write it down. And Elizabeth, one of the things that you happiness bullied me into was watching Mad Men and you said it was great and that I would love it. And you were 1,000% correct. I love, love, love Mad Men. And there is an amazing scene in Mad Men. I'll put a link in the show notes where the character Paul Kinsey forgets to write something down and a whole scene comes. It's about an ad campaign that they're trying to do for Western Union Telegram. It's amazing. So I'll put that link in the show notes, but it's a good reminder. There is no idea that is so big that you will not forget it. That is just the truth.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. True, true lesson I learn over and over again.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Oh, yeah. So, Elizabeth, take us up. What's your gold star?

[Elizabeth Craft]

Okay. I am giving my gold star to a television show. It is to Squid Game The Challenge Season 2 on Netflix. Gretch, you know I love a good reality competition like Survivor.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Yeah.

[Elizabeth Craft]

I thought, how could they come up with something totally different and fresh and new? But that's compelling and great characters. Well, Squid Game the Challenge, season two. I haven't seen season one. I will see. It is absolutely fantastic. It is based on, as you might guess, the drama show Squid Game. It is adults vying for over $4 million. Whoa. Playing games similar to what they play in Squid Game. Instead of being killed, they are shot with a paintball. And it is just edge of your seat, yelling at the tv, loving the people, hiding your eyes, binge worthy. It's fantastic.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Oh, my gosh. You've gotten me wanting to watch it and I don't usually like that kind of show, but it sounds so good.

[Elizabeth Craft]

It's great. I love it. So if you're looking for something over the holidays to watch with the family, this is super fun.

[Gretchen Rubin]

Excellent. Well, the resource for this week if you are still searching for the right gifts to give to the people in your life. If you take 10 minutes and go through my new gift idea generator worksheet, there's a few prompts and you will come away with some real personal ideas tailored to each recipient. And if you need more help, there are five gift guides and the gift appreciation [e-mail] giftgiving. Lots of ideas and guidance there. Elizabeth, what are we reading? What are you reading?

[Elizabeth Craft]

I am right now just keeping up with my daily War and Peace reading by Leo Tolstoy.

[Gretchen Rubin]

And I am reading Like Effect by Cynthia Dupree Sweeney. And that's it for this episode of Happier. Remember to try this at home. Choose your one word theme for the year. Let us know what you picked. We want to know.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Thanks to our executive producer, Chuck Reed and everyone at Lemonada.

[Gretchen Rubin]

And here's your rhyming reminder. And we really mean it very sincerely. If you're a fan of the podcast, review it fast. It really helps other people discover the show.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Until next week. I'm Elizabeth Craft.

[Gretchen Rubin]

And I'm Gretchen Rubin. Thanks for joining us. Onward and upward, Elizabeth. One of the things that I think about X rays is all the, like, funny X rays where it's like a dog's stomach with a Christmas ornament in it or whatever. There's a lot of sort of comical things with X rays. I feel like there's a lot of New Yorker cartoons with X ray jokes. I bet that you're gonna find a ton of material about X rays.

[Elizabeth Craft]

Yes. Or a lot of Gary Larson cartoons.

[Gretchen Rubin]

We gotta look up the Gary Larson X ray. I'm confident there's a Gary Larson cartoon. Yes.