The Grateful Podcast with Jack Wagoner
You can be grateful for what you have and still strive for more. The duality of gratitude and success is a difficult concept to grasp, but understanding it is invaluable in both your success and well-being.
On the Grateful Podcast, Jack and his guests explain how everyone has opportunities and choices to go after the life they want, and they owe it to themselves to do just that. You must recognize and be grateful for what you have in order to get the best out of yourself moving forward.
There are conversations ranging from business to mental health and everything in between as well.
The Grateful Podcast with Jack Wagoner
Why Your Happiness Always Returns to Baseline (and How to Raise It) | 103
In 1978, researchers compared two groups you’d never expect: lottery winners and accident victims who had become paraplegic. The results shocked the world.
Within a year, both groups had returned to nearly the same level of happiness as before.
This is the science of hedonic adaptation — our brain’s tendency to normalize no matter what happens. Winning millions. Losing everything. We always come back to baseline.
But here’s the hopeful part: your baseline isn’t fixed. You can raise it.
In this episode, I break down:
• The famous “lottery vs. paraplegic” study on baseline happiness.
• Why we imagine extremes in the future (arrival fallacy).
• Four science-backed ways to elevate your baseline happiness: gratitude, relationships, purposeful work, and meditation.
• How to frame the future realistically so you’re no longer disappointed by extremes.
🎧 Whether you’re chasing big goals or recovering from setbacks, this episode will show you how to live at a higher baseline.
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📺 Listen on your favorite platform:
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-grateful-podcast-with-jack-wagoner/id1725776061
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5EsTEpQAjU4BxUrDoFyZ6b
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🧠 More from Jack:
Newsletter (Magic, Meaning & Momentum): https://magic.beehiiv.com/v1/aa6b0945-43aa-43c8-b320-0fde6998f852?email=%7B%7Bemail%7D%7D
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jack_wagoner_/
1:1 Coaching & Dream-Chasing Guidance: jackcwagoner@gmail.com
💬 If you found this conversation meaningful, send it to a friend and leave a review. It really helps more people find this kind of soul-nourishing content.
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🎙️ About Jack:
I’m an 18-year-old high school student with a big dream: to show the world that you can be grateful and ambitious at the same time. Through The Grateful Podcast, I explore what it means to live a meaningful life—one deep conversation at a time.
