Sustaining Happiness in Everyday Life - Part 3 of 3, The Science of Happiness

Marty Jalove Master Happiness
Jun 17
6 min read

Sustaining Happiness in Everyday Life

Have you ever woken up, opened your eyes, and felt the weight of the day before your feet even hit the floor? We all want lasting joy. But sometimes happiness feels like a slippery thing we catch one moment and lose the next.

Here is the truth that changes everything: happiness is not a mood that visits. It is a muscle you build. And just like any muscle, you have to work it, wake it, and use it every single day. That is exactly what this episode is all about.

With Special Guest:

Bette Lawrence-Water

Benedictine University, MPH Lecturer

Follow us at: www.MasterHappiness.com/live or “Bacon Bits with Master Happiness” on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeart Radio or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.

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Inside the Episode 3

In Part 3 of the Science of Happiness series on Bacon Bits with Master Happiness, host Marty Jalove welcomes back a returning favorite: Bette Lawrence-Water. Bette is a public health lecturer at Benedictine College and a certified happiness coach with the Happiness Institute. At 81 years young, she brings warmth, wisdom, and a whole lot of laughter to the table.

The chemistry between Marty and Bette is electric. They finish each other's thoughts, swap stories, and the energy in the room practically hums. Marty's high-octane curiosity draws out Bette's deep, grounded wisdom. The result feels less like an interview and more like two friends serving up something special.

This episode is the third in their journey. The first explored how to find happiness. The second tackled the barriers that block it. Today, the question is simple but powerful: once you decide to fight for joy, how do you make it last?

The BACON Framework for Sustaining Happiness

Marty uses the show's signature acronym to map out five practical ways to keep your joy alive. Remember, it is not about the bacon for chewing. It is about the bacon for doing.

Smiling Marty Jalove, Master Happiness and Bette Lawrence-Water in a radio studio wearing headphones, with neon 98.3 The Life and Bacon Bits Radio signs. — Marty and Bette in the studio

B — Build Daily Happiness Habits

Happiness loves repetition. Bette starts every morning by choosing joy before her feet touch the ground. She takes three or four deep breaths, breathes in the day, and repeats a positive affirmation to herself.

"I'm going to make someone happy today," she says, "even if it's myself."

Marty agrees. He warns against grabbing your phone first thing and scrolling into comparison. Instead, claim a little "me time." Even 30 seconds in front of the mirror can set the tone. The takeaway? Schedule joy like you schedule meetings. Build small rituals, and they will hold you up when life gets heavy.

A — Align Your Life With Your Values

Happiness fades when your actions drift from what matters most. Bette names her core values plainly: trustworthiness, honesty, compassion, and respect. When your to-do list lines up with those values, peace has a place to settle.

Marty adds a memorable lens through Aristotle's three types of friends. Utility friends come from shared circumstances, like work. Pleasure friends make you laugh and lift your spirits. Values friends are the ones you can cry with. Knowing where people fit, he says, helps you honor each relationship for what it truly is. The takeaway? Do a values check-in, and protect the lines you refuse to cross.

C — Create a Happiness Toolkit

Life will wobble. That is why you need tools ready before the storm. Bette's toolkit overflows: a trusted circle of women friends, a "Late Love" Zoom group, and her beloved practice of writing poetry. Every morning she serves her husband breakfast in bed with a fresh poem she wrote for him.

Marty layers on a beautiful idea from Arthur Brooks: Savoring. Do not just glance at the photo or skim the song. Dig in. Ask why it moves you. Savor the past, the present, and the future. The takeaway? Fill a toolkit with playlists, journals, people, and practices, then truly soak them in.

O — Observe Life's Ups and Downs Without Losing Yourself

Sustaining happiness does not mean staying happy every second. As Bette puts it, happiness is not the absence of hard times. It is your capacity to stay present through all of it.

Marty's roller coaster analogy lands this point perfectly. The climb is the work. The thrill lives in the rising and the falling, not just the peak. When you are at the top, savor it, knowing it will pass. When you are at the bottom, remember you are heading back up. Nobody runs to ride the slow, safe train twice. We crave the ups and downs because they make life exciting. The takeaway? Find the lesson in every dip, and stay grounded through the ride.

N — Nurture Meaningful Connections

Joy shared is joy multiplied. Bette recently emceed a Race Amity Day event in Naperville, where strangers connected through exercises that nudged them out of their comfort zones. She walked away with five new friends and a full heart.

Marty shares his "Spin the Dial, Share a Smile" practice from the COVID days. He scrolls to a random contact, calls them, and simply asks how they are. The takeaway? Connection does not come to you. You nurture it through small, intentional actions, and sometimes a single friendly voice is exactly what someone needs.

Chemistry, Laughter, and Real Talk

What makes this episode sing is the warmth between these two. Bette shares her husband George's joke about the optimist and the pessimist. Both wake up and say, "Good Lord, it's morning." But one says it with gratitude, the other with dread. Same words, opposite worlds.

Marty matches her vulnerability with a story of his own. As a kid, he set his coat on a space heater and accidentally started a house fire. He can laugh about it now, and that laughter is the whole point. These two prove that joy and honesty can live in the same room.

The episode also turns tender. Bette opens up about caring for a sick family member and how writing has been her release. That mix of comedy and heart is what makes the conversation unforgettable.

Bette even closes with wisdom from centenarians: look forward, not back. Avoid petty arguments. Stay busy and full of purpose. Love people, and find something to like in everyone you meet. Do something for yourself every single day.

Bacon Bits: Key Takeaways

Start strong: Choose joy first thing in the morning with breath and affirmation.
Stay aligned: Match your daily actions to the values you hold dear.
Stock your toolkit: Keep playlists, journals, and trusted friends within reach, and savor them fully.
Ride the coaster: Embrace life's ups and downs as the source of real meaning.
Reach out: Nurture connections on purpose, because joy shared is joy strengthened.

Your Turn to Keep Sizzling

Sustaining happiness is not about chasing a feeling. It is about building a life where joy has room to breathe. You build it with habits, protect it with values, support it with tools, steady it through the storms, and multiply it through connection.

So here is your question to carry with you: What is one small ritual you can practice today to keep your happiness muscle strong?

Tune in to the full episode of Bacon Bits with Master Happiness at baconbitsradio.com. Listen, soak in the wisdom, and share it with someone who needs a little more joy in their day. Then go out there and keep on sizzling.

Sustaining Happiness in Everyday Life

To learn more about Sustaining Happiness in Everyday Life - Part 3 of 3 go to: www.MasterHappiness.com/live or “Bacon Bits with Master Happiness” on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeart Radio or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.

See it on YouTube

Or catch us LIVE on "BACON BITS with Master Happiness" on 983thelife.com, Monday Night at 7:00 PM and start making your life SIZZLE!

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Marty Jalove of Master Happiness is a Company Coach, Business Consultant, and Marketing Strategist that helps small businesses, teams, and individuals find focus, feel fulfilled, and have fun. He helps businesses struggling with communication issues between co-owners, staff, and customers grow a happier and healthier business.

Master Happiness stresses the importance of realistic goal setting, empowerment, and accountability in order to encourage employee engagement and retention. The winning concentration is simple: Happy Employees attract Happy Customers and Happy Customers come back with Friends.

Want to learn more about bringing more happiness into your workplace and life? Contact Master Happiness at www.MasterHappiness.com or www.WhatsYourBacon.com