I thought you might be interested in the latest post over at Get Organized Wizard. Lately I’ve been thinking about change. I’ve observed friends, and felt for myself, the difficulty of navigating through changes that we don’t want, but have no control over – whether it’s a job redundancy, end of a relationship, or some… Continue reading What To Do About Change You Don’t Want, And Can’t Control
Category: Positive psychology
Born happy? The link between happiness, personality and genes
A new British study has shed more light on the genes/personality contribution to happiness. Genes may contribute up to 50% of the variance in happiness, and the new research suggests this genetic influence on happiness is essentially conveyed via personality. Researchers using a representative sample of 973 twin pairs found that the heritable differences in… Continue reading Born happy? The link between happiness, personality and genes
How to be happy – 14. Concentrate on intentional factors
Lesson: A happiness model Although positive psychology and well-being research have flourished, there’s no agreed-upon theory of happiness. But a model has been suggested, quite recently in fact, and it’s based on 3 factors (1). 1. Circumstances and demographics – like health, finances and marital status 2. Personality and genes – the ‘innate’ aspects of… Continue reading How to be happy – 14. Concentrate on intentional factors
Happiness, New York style
In the New York magazine article Happiness: A User’s Manual, Ben Mathis-Lilley takes a bunch of happiness research findings and translates them into 20 useful tips for New Yorkers. The result is fun, and a cute reminder of those findings about happiness – some of which may be familiar to Happiness Strategies readers via 101… Continue reading Happiness, New York style
Happiness and childhood: do we need happier classrooms?
In last Monday’s Yorkshire Post Maggie Stratton asked the question: In a society obsessed by material gain, should schools be teaching our children the true meaning of happiness? Her answer draws on the advice of two education experts who believe it’s time to get very serious about happiness at school. Alas, say Smith and Jones,… Continue reading Happiness and childhood: do we need happier classrooms?
How to be happy – 13. Act like you’re an extravert – even if you aren’t
Lesson: We can learn from happy extraverts and happy introverts We saw in Strategy 12 that introverted people tend to be less happy than their extraverted counterparts. But before you anti-social butterflies throw up your wings in despair and head for the nearest net, let me share some nuggets of evidence that the extraversion-happiness link… Continue reading How to be happy – 13. Act like you’re an extravert – even if you aren’t
How to be happy – 12. Make peace with your personality
Lesson: Not all personalities are created equally happy In Strategy 11 we saw there’s evidence that genes link to happiness via personality – which has a moderate-to-strong genetic component, emerges early, and stays stable-ish through life. Psychologists believe personality can, to some extent, be reflected by 5 traits: agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, and neuroticism. These… Continue reading How to be happy – 12. Make peace with your personality
Sex + dark chocolate = a brainier you. Now that’s gotta make you happy!
Tuesday’s SMH ran a story on a new book telling us what to do, and what to avoid, to keep our brain cells firing at optimal levels. Top brain gainers include copious sex, dark chocolate and cold meats for breakfast. So start your day with a daybreak dalliance, followed by cold, leftover BBQ chicken pizza… Continue reading Sex + dark chocolate = a brainier you. Now that’s gotta make you happy!
The Pursuit of Happyness – redux
A couple of months ago I mentioned a review of the film The Pursuit of Happyness, taken from a positive psychology perspective. I reproduced the review’s 224-word abstract (journal lingo for short summary provided by the author), duly citing the author, source and relevant copyright notice. I even wrote a short blurb describing the publication… Continue reading The Pursuit of Happyness – redux
Happier: Learn the secrets to daily joy and lasting fulfillment [Book review]
Happier is based on Tal Ben-Shahar’s positive psychology primer – the most popular class at Harvard and attended by about 20% of all Harvard graduates. Ben-Shahar wisely suggests that a better question than Am I happy? is How can I be happier?, since this recognizes happiness to be an ongoing and lifelong process. He positions… Continue reading Happier: Learn the secrets to daily joy and lasting fulfillment [Book review]