“Fun is medicine.” -Lisa Cypers Kamen

In western cultures, many people have been led to believe that if we consume, share, or do the right things, happiness is right around the corner. But, how many of us have turned the corner only to find boredom or loneliness? To unpack the secret to finding joy in everyday activities, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with organizational psychologist and behavioral scientist, Mike Rucker about the connection between, fun, health, and time management. He describes the SAVOR and hedonic adaptation concepts from his book, The Fun Habit: How the Pursuit of Joy and Wonder Can Change Your Life. And, he shares the secret sauce to escaping the perceived pursuit of happiness and toxic positivity.

• How can we live a joyful life in our Western culture that pushes an unattainable pursuit of happiness? [2:28]
• Mike describes ‘fun’ from a scientific perspective and shares how to strategically spend time to fend off boredom. [6:20]
• Hedonic adaptation refers to a set point of individual happiness no matter what is happening in the person’s life, as Mike explains. [8:40]
• Mike explains the concept of time affluence and how to bring joy to what could be lost hours. [14:16]
• In his book, The Fun Habit: How the Pursuit of Joy and Wonder Can Change Your Life, Mike uses SAVOR as an acronym to describe how to make events rich and meaningful.  [22:05] 

About Lisa’s guest: 

Dr. Mike Rucker is an organizational psychologist and behavioral scientist. He’s member of the American Psychological Association, charter member of the International Positive Psychology Association, and an accredited member of the American College of Sports Medicine. In all he holds five advanced degrees including a PhD. in organizational psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology and an MBA from the University of Southern California.

Mike has been academically published in publications like the International Journal of Workplace Health Management. His ideas about fun and health have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Fast Company, Psychology Today, Forbes, Vox, Thrive Global, Mindful, mindbodygreen, and more. He currently serves as a senior leader at Active Wellness and is the author of the upcoming book The Fun Habit, available January 2023.