This week on the Being Well Podcast, Forrest is joined by one of the world’s leading happiness researchers, Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky, to discuss the real secret to happiness: feeling loved. Dr. Lyubomirsky explains the key difference between being loved and feeling loved, why self-improvement (usually) isn’t the answer, and how giving love leads to getting love. They then walk through five mindsets that help people both get more love and feel more loved. Other topics include the vulnerability paradox, capitalization and the importance of enthusiasm, using the mindsets to evaluate our relationships, polyamory and non-monogamous love, and AI companions.
You can find Sonja’s diagnostic quiz at howtofeelloved.com
About our Guest: Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky is a Professor of Psychology at UC Riverside, and the author of a number of bestselling books including How to Feel Loved with Dr. Harry Reis. She is one of the most frequently cited well-being researchers in the world.
Key Topics
- 0:00: Intro: connection as the key to happiness
- 2:31: The difference between being loved and feeling loved
- 6:58: What love is
- 9:09: If only beliefs and the vulnerability paradox
- 19:36: Mindsets to embrace if you’re looking for more love and connection
- 23:26: The relationship “sea”saw
- 31:44: Five mindsets to embrace if you want to feel more loved
- 51:51: AI companionship, polyamory, and MDMA
- 1:08:03: Recap
