Gretchen Rubin had an epiphany one rainy afternoon in the unlikeliest of places: a city bus. "The days are long, but the years are short," she realized. "Time is passing, and I'm not focusing enough on the things that really matter." In that moment, she decided to dedicate a year to her happiness project.

Do you find yourself hoping that someday, life will be less hectic? One day, you say, you’ll finally have time for the activities that you love–writing that book, completing that triathlon, traveling with friends. But if the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that life is unpredictable. If we’re not careful, dull, unfulfilling tasks can quickly occupy our precious hours, derail our best-laid plans, and make life feel like a slog.

How do you feel about setting goals? I’ve heard people say they feel energized, depressed, confused, terrified, pumped, ambivalent, lost...or all of the above. Here’s what I’ve realized: Our relationship to success is inside-out. When we make our New Year’s resolutions, bucket lists, big plans, or weekly to-dos, we’re hoping that when we "arrive" we’ll be fulfilled. Our hearts will swell as we cross the finish line, and then we can finally relax and savor our happiness. Except more often than not, that doesn’t happen....

In 2014, Elizabeth and Nate Thames were conventional 9-5 young urban professionals. But the couple had a dream to become modern-day homesteaders in rural Vermont. Determined to retire as early as possible in order to start living each day - as opposed to wishing time away working for the weekends - they enacted a plan to save an enormous amount of money: well over 70 percent of their joint take-home pay. Dubbing themselves the Frugalwoods, Elizabeth began documenting their unconventional frugality and the resulting wholesale lifestyle transformation on their eponymous blog.

We all go through hard times. We can experience moments when life feels like an uphill struggle, leading to unhappiness and stress. Perhaps we are feeling sad, anxious, or struggling to deal with something bigger, such as a bereavement, a loss, a painful ending or a broken heart. It is during these challenging times that we could do with some help with our thoughts and feelings.