From the author of the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers The Happiness Project and Happier at Home comes a book that tackles the question: How do we make good habits that are easy, effortless, and automatic?
     Habits are the invisible architecture of our lives. Rubin provides an analytical and scientific framework from which to understand these habits--as well as change them for good. Infused with her compelling voice and funny stories, she illustrates the core principles of habit formation with dozens of strategies that she tests out on herself and others. In doing so, she discovers answers to questions such as:

   • At times, I've picked up a habit overnight, but other times, it's taken years to develop. Why? 

   • Why do some people resist habits, while others adopt them eagerly? 

   • I want to help my child/spouse/colleagues make a change. What can I do? 

   • Why do I resist other people's advice on how to change, even if I think they are right? 

   • How do I make good habits convenient and easy?
     Rubin provides tools to help readers better understand themselves, and presents a clear, practical menu of strategies so readers can take an individualized approach. She tackles each strategy herself, and in doing so shows us the importance of knowing ourselves, and our own habit-tendencies. Armed with self-knowledge, we can pursue the habits in ways that will truly work for us, not against us. Going to the gym can be as easy, effortless, and automatic as putting on a seatbelt. We can file expense reports, take time for fun, or pass up that piece of carrot cake without having to decide. With foundation of good habits, we can build a life that reflects our values and goals.

— Included in Oprah's Super Soul 100 list

Gretchen Rubin’s most recent book is The Happiness Project, and she is also the author of the bestselling Forty Ways to Look at Winston Churchill; Forty Ways to Look at JFK; Power Money Fame Sex: A User’s Guide; and Profane Waste.

A graduate of Yale and Yale Law School (where she was editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Journal), Rubin started her career as a lawyer, and she was clerking for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor when she realized she really wanted to be a writer. Raised in Kansas City, she lives in New York City with her husband and two young daughters.

Gretchen Rubin's profile page

"The Happiness Project lays out life’s essential goals. . . . Better Than Before serves as a kind of detailed instruction manual on how to achieve them. . . . As it happens, when I was reading this book I really needed it. . . . By the end of the week I was feeling calm and productive, in perfect harmony with the cosmic schedule."
—The New York Times Book Review

"Gretchen explores strategic scientifically researched formulations for changing one's life. . . . The book's specificity is impressive. Gretchen's detailed, structured methodology for diagnosing your personality type and consequent optimal modus operandi for changing habits, is enticing and I myself plan to experiment."
?Huffington Post

"Insightful." —Parade

"If you’re struggling to make changes to your routine, this is a book that will help get you there. I’ve enjoyed all of Gretchen’s books . . . but this may be my favorite."
—The New York Times

“Gretchen Rubin is a writer after my own heart—seriously brilliant, very warm, and funny. I think she’s amazing.” —Anne Lamott, New York Times bestselling author of Bird by Bird and Operating Instructions“Do you have a bad habit you’re trying to shake, or a good one you wish you could cultivate? Gretchen Rubin is one of the most charming and erudite authors of her generation. Here, she uses her gifts to help you eat right, sleep well, stop procrastinating, and start enjoying all that life has to offer.”
—Susan Cain, New York Times bestselling author of Quiet

“Gretchen Rubin combines deep research and observations from her own life to explain how habits emerge and—more important—how they can change. It’s indispensable for anyone hoping to overhaul how they (almost unthinkingly) behave.”
—Charles Duhigg, New York Times bestselling author of The Power of Habit
“Filled with insights about our patterns of behavior, Better Than Before addresses one of life’s big and timeless questions: how can we transform ourselves? In a way that’s thought-provoking, surprising, and often funny, Gretchen Rubin provides us with the tools to build a life that truly reflects our goals and values.”
—Arianna Huffington, founder of the Huffington Post and New York Times bestselling author of Thrive

“Is there a habit in your life you’d like to change? If so, here’s your first step: Read this book. It’s loaded with practical, everyday tips and techniques that will guide you to success.”
—Dan Heath, New York Times bestselling coauthor of Made to Stick, Switch, and Decisive

“Almost everyone wants to be ‘better’—slimmer, smarter, better looking, more interesting, more productive—and we want to know we’re improving, we want the reinforcing evidence. Gretchen Rubin’s new masterpiece, Better Than Before, shows us how. She shows how to turn vicious cycles into virtuous cycles and how to turn ruts into roads less traveled. The key is in starting and supporting the habits that will turn us into who we want to be. Unlike other books on habits, Rubin’s book gives us the specific tools and a blueprint for getting back on track—the fast track.”
—Brian Wansink, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling author of Slim by Design and
Mindless Eating

“Gretchen Rubin’s superpower is curiosity. Luckily for us, she’s turned her passionate inquiry to the topic of making and mastering habits. Weaving together research, unforgettable examples, and her brilliant insight, Better Than Before is a force for real change. It rearranged what I thought I knew about my habits, and I’m better for it.”
—Brené Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Daring Greatly and The Gifts of Imperfection

“With bold and original insights, Gretchen Rubin reveals the hidden truths about how to change our habits—from resisting junk food and hitting the gym to ending procrastination and saving money. Better Than Before is a gem, and the first habit you should form is reading a chapter every night.”
—Adam Grant, Wharton professor and New York Times bestselling author of 
Give and Take

“Gretchen Rubin is a writer after my own heart—seriously brilliant, very warm, and funny. I think she’s amazing.”
—Anne Lamott, New York Times bestselling author of Bird by Bird and Operating Instructions