Dr. Laurie Santos: The Truth About Happiness Nobody Told You

BREAKDOWN

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

00:00 – Welcome to the show + sponsor message (Thera Sage)

02:00 – What sparked Laurie’s lifelong study of happiness

04:00 – The crisis of mental health in students—and why it matters for everyone

06:00 – Why getting into Yale didn’t make students happier

08:00 – The “arrival fallacy” and the myth of circumstantial happiness

10:00 – Why our culture is confused—and our brains are wired backwards

12:00 – Hedonic adaptation: why nothing stays good for long

14:00 – How dopamine, comparison, and fear cycles keep us stuck

16:00 – Natural selection didn’t design you to be happy

18:00 – Why living in the present moment is harder than ever

20:00 – The devastating impact of tech on joy, connection, and presence

22:00 – Why even small social gestures create massive emotional shifts

24:00 – The toxic trap of “Good Vibes Only”

26:00 – What negative emotions are really trying to tell you

28:00 – Gratitude for the signal: rethinking anger, frustration, and overwhelm

30:00 – Curiosity over judgment: why your emotion isn’t the problem

32:00 – How to begin shifting when you feel stuck and disconnected

34:00 – The misunderstood power of self-compassion

36:00 – “Go gentle”: the science of slow, sustainable success

38:00 – Reclaiming your values in a noisy, comparison-driven world

40:00 – The science of time affluence and behavioral change

42:00 – Mindset, mindfulness, and the daily rituals that shift perspective

44:00 – How awe rewires the brain and inspires action

46:00 – Finding wonder in nature, stillness, and even YouTube

48:00 – What dogs can teach us about presence

50:00 – How to train happiness in kids (and ourselves)

52:00 – The #1 truth about happiness most people ignore

54:00 – Why knowing the science isn’t enough—you have to live it

56:00 – From Aristotle to modern science: the path to the “good life”

58:00 – Final insights + how to pursue lasting fulfillment