About this episode:

Karen Guggenheim is a pioneer in the global happiness movement, a leader in promoting the science behind well-being to an international audience, and a motivational speaker inspiring people about how to grow post trauma and rebuild a life focused on meaning, purpose, and happiness.

Kareni is author of Cultivating Happiness: Overcome Trauma and Positively Transform Your Life (2024), and has given a TED Talk entitled “The Bridge to Happiness.” She is the producer of the World Happiness Summit®, a leading well-being conference promoting the benefits of an evidence-based approach to increase happiness in all areas of life. She is also CEO of WOHASU®, the comprehensive wellbeing ecosystem named after the Summit which is inspiring a fast-growing movement sending a positive rippling effect around the world.

Follow us:

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Links:

• Website
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• Book: Cultivating Happiness: Overcome Trauma and Positively Transform Your Life (2024)
• TED Talk: “The Bridge to Happiness” (2024)
• World Happiness Summit: listeners get a 20% discount to the 2026 Summit with the code “FLOURISH”

00:00 Meet Karen Guggenheim

00:59 Why Trauma and Happiness

02:39 Loss and Choosing Life

05:28 Meaning as a Shield

09:09 From Accidental to Intentional

12:12 Relationships and Legacy

16:07 World Happiness Summit Origins

20:59 WOHASU Discount Details

21:48 Defining Post Traumatic Growth

25:31 Beyond Positivity Mindset

27:23 Gratitude As Reset

28:45 Presence Through Grief

30:02 Practical Happiness Tools

33:52 Design Your Day

37:53 Acceptance Not Suppression

40:13 Values As Lighthouse

43:23 Forgiveness Frees Energy

44:59 Choose Life Focus

46:38 Explorer Mindset

48:38 Summit And Farewell

About this episode:

Annie Duke is an author, speaker, and consultant in the decision-making space. She loves to dive deep into decision-making under uncertainty. Her latest obsession is on the topic of quitting. In particular, she is on a mission to rehabilitate the term “quitting” and get people to be proud of walking away from things.

Annie is the author of two bestsellers, Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away (2022), and Thinking in Bets (2018). As a former professional poker player, she has won more than $4 million in tournament poker. During her career, Annie won a World Series of Poker bracelet and is the only woman to have won the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions and the NBC National Poker Heads-Up Championship.

Annie retired from poker in 2012. Prior to becoming a professional poker player, she was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship to study Cognitive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her master’s degree. In 2023, Annie completed her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology.

Annie is the co-founder of The Alliance for Decision Education, a non-profit whose mission is to improve lives by empowering students through decision skills education.

Learn more and subscribe at flourishfmpodcast.com

Follow us:

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Links:

• Website
• Substack
• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• YouTube
• Twitter
• Facebook
• The Alliance for Decision Education
• Make Better Decisions course on Maven
• Decision Education Podcast

00:00 Meet Dr. Annie Duke: Decision-Making, Poker, and the Case for Quitting

05:22 Defining a “Good Decision”: Goals, Values, and the Four Quadrants

09:14 Luck vs. Choice: Avoiding Nihilism and Leaning Into Uncertainty

12:49 Sponsor Break: The Anti-Fragile Academy

14:21 Decision-Making for Flourishing: Agency Without Illusions of Control

18:33 Quitting Well: Updating Beliefs, Identity Threats, and Mental Time Travel

28:03 Quitting, Happiness & the Forecasting Problem (Tying the Strands Together)

29:38 Why We Misread Our Values—and Resist Changing Course

30:52 The ‘Future Unhappy’ Exercise: Mental Time Travel for Better Decisions

32:42 Get Outside Perspectives (Independently): Friends, Mentors & Written Answers

34:11 Real-World Example: Forecasting Reveals It’s Time to Shut the Business Down

35:15 Why Focus on What Could Go Wrong: Optimism, Faster Pivots & Opportunity Cost

37:01 Flourishing Takeaway: Tech-Free Savoring Walks (and the Dog Rule)

43:26 Flow, Sports & Real Connection: Pickleball/Tennis as Tech-Free Joy

46:10 Wrap-Up: Courses, Decision Education in K–12, and Final Thanks

About this episode:

Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky is the world’s preeminent expert on happiness. She is a Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside and is the author of The Myths of Happiness and the bestseller The How of Happiness, which have been published in 39 countries. Her next book, co-authored with Harry Reis, is coming out in February and is titled, How to Feel Loved: The Five Mindsets That Get You More of What Matters Most.

Sonja received her degrees from Harvard and Stanford. She has been awarded many grants and honors for her research, which focuses on how and why happiness can shift over time, and how to build lasting happiness via gratitude, kindness, and connection interventions.

Sonja’s work has been written up in hundreds of magazine and newspaper articles, and she has appeared on multiple TV shows, radio shows, and feature documentaries worldwide.

Learn more and subscribe at flourishfmpodcast.com

Follow us:

YouTube @flourishfmcast

Instagram @flourishfmpodcast

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Links:

• Website
• The Happiness Files Newsletter
• Elevate Your Happiness Membership
• LinkedIn

• Instagram
• Twitter
• Facebook
• Books
• Happiness and Mindset Quizzes
• Google Scholar

02:05 Defining Happiness

03:56 Happiness and Human Flourishing

07:17 The Benefits of Happiness

11:56 Effective Happiness Interventions

13:55 Gratitude Interventions

21:35 Acts of Kindness and Their Impact

23:38 Connection Interventions and Upcoming Book

28:14 Understanding Loneliness and Connection

29:51 Introducing the New Book: How to Feel Loved

33:26 Mindsets for Feeling Loved

39:23 The Role of Negative Emotions

41:20 The Power of Gratitude

45:33 The Secret to Happiness: Deep Conversations

50:11 Holiday Conversations and Final Thoughts