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Happiness Isn't Something You Earn: Noticing the Joy Already Here, with Ulrika Torquato
3rd June 2026 • The Mindful Living • Avik Chakraborty and Sana
00:00:00 00:28:52

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What if happiness isn't waiting on the other side of the promotion, the move, or life finally settling down? What if the part of you that says "I'll be happy when…" is the very thing standing between you and the joy already quietly present?

Former doctor turned opera singer and coach Ulrika Torquato joins Sana to explore happiness not as something we achieve, but as something we notice. A gentle conversation about chasing approval, the difference between gratitude and appreciation, and learning to taste your own ordinary, remarkable life.

About the Guest:

Ulrika Torquato is a coach based in Switzerland who trained first as a doctor, then as an opera singer, before turning to the question that runs through all her work: why we delay our own happiness. With Swedish and Brazilian roots, she now helps people reconnect with the joy already present in everyday life.

Key Takeaways:

  • Happiness is not something you earn or reach. It lives in the smallest daily moments, if you pause to notice them.
  • Doing things to win approval, even good things, is its own quiet trap. You can only truly give from a full cup.
  • The deeper belief under "I'll be happy when…" is often "I'm not worthy yet." The fulfilment we chase is already inside.
  • Presence is the doorway. A bird's song, a walk, a meal, a real conversation, fully felt, is joy itself.
  • Ulrika draws a gentle distinction: gratitude can involve comparison, while appreciation is simply tasting your life as it is.

Connect With the Guest:

Episode Chapters: (timestamps approx.)

[00:00] The "I'll Be Happy When" Trap: a cold open on delayed joy

[02:00] Doctor to Opera Singer: Ulrika's search for what actually fulfils her

[06:00] Chasing Approval: why pleasing others cannot make us happy

[10:00] The Deeper Belief: worthiness, and the joy already inside

[14:00] A Life Lived, Not Achieved: presence over performance

[18:00] Where Delay Hides: not taking time to notice what is here

[22:00] Start With a Walk: practising presence in ordinary moments

[26:00] Appreciation Over Gratitude: tasting life as it is

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