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  • Better Than Before

  • Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives
  • Written by: Gretchen Rubin
  • Narrated by: Gretchen Rubin
  • Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (84 ratings)

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Better Than Before cover art

Better Than Before

Written by: Gretchen Rubin
Narrated by: Gretchen Rubin
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Publisher's Summary

The author of the blockbuster New York Times best sellers The Happiness Project and Happier at Home tackles the critical question: How do we change?

Gretchen Rubin's answer: through habits. Habits are the invisible architecture of everyday life. It takes work to make a habit, but once that habit is set, we can harness the energy of habits to build happier, stronger, more productive lives.

So if habits are a key to change, then what we really need to know is: How do we change our habits?

Better Than Before answers that question. It presents a practical, concrete framework to allow listeners to understand their habits - and to change them for good. Infused with Rubin's compelling voice, rigorous research, and easy humor, and packed with vivid stories of lives transformed, Better Than Before explains the (sometimes counterintuitive) core principles of habit formation.

Along the way Rubin uses herself as guinea pig, tests her theories on family and friends, and answers listeners' most pressing questions - oddly, questions that other writers and researchers tend to ignore:

  • Why do I find it tough to create a habit for something I love to do?
  • Sometimes I can change a habit overnight, and sometimes I can't change a habit no matter how hard I try. Why?
  • How quickly can I change a habit?
  • What can I do to make sure I stick to a new habit?
  • How can I help someone else change a habit?
  • Why can I keep habits that benefit others but can't make habits that are just for me?

Whether listeners want to get more sleep, stop checking their devices, maintain a healthy weight, or finish an important project, habits make change possible. Listening to just a few chapters of Better Than Before will make listeners eager to start work on their own habits - even before they've finished the audiobook.

Bonus feature: includes a full episode from the author's podcast Happier with Gretchen Rubin in which she discusses how to build happier habits into everyday life.

©2015 Gretchen Rubin (P)2015 Random House Audio

What the critics say

"Here, she [Gretchen Rubin] 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 best-selling 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 best-selling 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 best-selling author of Thrive)

What listeners say about Better Than Before

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

No new insights, but a good read.

I enjoyed the book that there was nothing earth-shattering in it. She added some good personal use cases and examples for her friends and family Also felt like an advert for a lot of other things that Gretchen does like her podcast and website.

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Street Smarts, not science based

A narrative collection of thoughts and observations with no substantial scientific background, no scientific investigation. Coffee time chatter rather than a well researched university grand rounds lecture. Claims are not substantiated by references. Therefore only of limited quality. I am disappointed that this is a NYT bestseller. Would not recommend.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Awesome book!

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I couldn’t be happier with it! Probably going to listen to it again!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Listen

Excellent listen if you're trying to form better habits. Well read, easy to follow and full of lots of sound advice.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Iffy food/eating habit examples

As an Eating Disorders counsellor, I didn’t like the food examples as they support diet culture and could be problematic for those struggling with disordered eating or eating disorders (eating disorders tend to thrive with things like quit sugars or carbs). Overall though really liked the book and the other types of examples!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

a great listen

this was an easy listen. well narrated and interesting to hear and easily absorbed. well worth the purchase

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Awesome book!

so many useful tips on creating healthy habits and helping understand your own personality which helps you learn what might bnb work better to ensure you stick with those habits!!

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    5 out of 5 stars

incredible audiobook, filled with great insight.

learn about your tendancy, how to develop habits with your tendancy, and other characteristics about yourself that play into successful habit development too!!

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