If you're having trouble staying motivated during the dog days of summer, it may not be just you.

It could be your brain. Find out how on this episode of Live Happy Now.

The ancient Greeks define happiness as the joy you feel moving towards your potential.

To think about positive psychology, it's a science. And it's actually younger than the Internet, believe it or not.

The reality is that social connection is in the research, the greatest predictor we have of long-term happiness.

You have some factors in your control. They can promote the health and resilience and growth of your absolutely most

important asset, which is your brain.

And so it all comes down to understanding ourselves.

There's a way for all of us to succeed, but it might take different things.

We're all looking for the same thing, and that's a way to bring a little bit more joy to our day.

Join us as we look at the many different paths that lead us to that happy place. This is Live Happy Now. Hello and greetings and welcome to another edition of the Live Happy Now podcast. I'm your host, J.R. Houston. Please that you are making us a part of your day wherever you are in the world and however you may be listening. Thanks for taking us with you. We also thank those of you who are tuning into our radio show each week on

radio.com or 98.7K love in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. And we thank those of you who have picked up a copy of the new

magazine, got Anna Ferris on the cover, got all kinds of fun stuff in there. You can check it out at your local

Barnes & Noble. You can also get it in a digital form at the Apple store or the Google Play

store, all kinds of fun stuff there. And we hope you are motivated to do so. Speaking of motivation,

what a lovely segue. It's like I'm a pro or something. I'm not. We're talking about motivation in this

episode of the Live Happy Now podcast, and we are joined by Elliot Birkman, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Oregon and director of the social and effective neuroscience lab.

He studies the motivational and cognitive factors that contribute to success and failure at things like quitting smoking or eating healthier or exercising.

And his work uses knowledge of brain function, structure, and connectivity to design and

improve interventions on health behavior and well-being.

Dr. Berkman, we are so appreciative that you were able to take some time out and hang out with

us today.

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