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The question

What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

Asked in 52 of the 131 consecutive instalments of The Guardian's The Q&A harvested on 2026-08-29.

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Val McDermid Scottish crime novel writer
I am happiest right now. Things are going really well – my professional life, my personal life, my family life.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 15 February 2020 source ↗
There are different kinds of happiness, but the simplest was when I was 13 because what one had to do was so obvious.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 19 October 2012 source ↗

More from Simone Biles

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Question In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to? Daily life
I just felt like it would be a little bit better to take a back seat, work on my mindfulness. And I knew that the girls would do an absolutely great job and I didn't want to risk the team a medal for kind of my screw ups because they've worked way too hard for that. So I just decided that those girls need to go in and do the rest of the competition.
Recorded Post-competition press conference, Ariake Gymnastics Centre, Tokyo Olympics, Rev, 27 July 2021 source ↗
Question What counsel would you give your twenty-year-old self — and what should they ignore? Time & hindsight
Yeah, I say put mental health first because if you don't, then you're not going to enjoy your sport and you're not going to succeed as much as you want to. So it's okay sometimes to even sit out the big competitions to focus on yourself because it shows how strong of a competitor and person that you really are rather than just battle through it.
Recorded Post-competition press conference, Ariake Gymnastics Centre, Tokyo Olympics, Rev, 27 July 2021 source ↗

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