1: As a kid growing up, what were the best toys?
Someone else’s toys!
2: Who’s happier? Lottery winners or paraplegics?
Trick question. The answer is neither, according to the research of Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert. In his popular TED talk, Dan tells us that if it happened over three months ago, major life traumas have little impact on our happiness.
The answers to both of these questions are examples of what social … continue reading
“Envy is the ulcer of the soul,” Socrates tells us.
Today we continue our exploration of the link between gratitude and happiness and some lessons from philosopher Brian Johnson‘s module on celebrating from his Optimize program. There will always be someone richer, funnier, better liked, more charismatic, and more successful.
We have a choice. We can let this fact trouble us. Or, not. Teddy Roosevelt tells us, “Comparison is … continue reading
This week we are exploring the relationship between happiness and gratitude.
We all look to the future and envision how we’d like our lives to be. We may do this consciously or subconsciously.
Dan Sullivan, founder of The Strategic Coach, calls this our ideal. In his book The Gap and the Gain, he suggests the ideal is a thought, a feeling, the best of all circumstances, a … continue reading
The balance sheet is a key component of any business.
We also have a personal balance sheet. Yes, this includes our cash in the bank and investments. But these financial assets aren’t our only assets. We also have our strengths, our passions, our personality, our skills, our experiences, and our memories.
This week we are exploring the power of gratitude to increase our happiness and success. Yesterday we examined the … continue reading
“There is no beautifier of complexion, or form, or behavior, like the wish to scatter joy and not pain around us.” Ralph Waldo Emerson… continue reading
What if we learned there was a brand new medicine that would make us happier. It would improve our romantic relationships as well as our friendships. Leave us feeling more optimistic and closer to God. Improve our effectiveness at work as well as our decision-making. Reduce stress and feelings of depression. Improve our physical health and the length and quality of our sleep.
There are no side effects.
And best … continue reading
The short answer?
Yes.
One famous longitudinal study looked at the health and wellbeing of a group of Harvard students who were examined and tested while they were in school in the 1940s and then every five years thereafter. At age 25, they were all found to be in good health. There wasn’t much difference at 30, 35, or 40.
Then, something happened between around the time they turned 45. The health … continue reading
“Study hard so that you’ll get good grades. Get good grades so you can get into a good college. Get into a good college so that you’ll get a good job. Get a good job and work hard so that you can get the good things in life. By the time you get the ‘good things,’ you can barely remember how to play,” George Leonard observes in the The Way … continue reading
The artist enters her studio at the same time each morning. Five days a week. Smelling the paint, she takes her seat at the easel. She arranges her brushes.
“The routine is important to me. When I get started, there is a wonderful sense of well-being,” she tells George Leonard in his excellent book The Way of Aikido. “It’s the routine itself that feeds me. If I didn’t do … continue reading
An Olympic gold medalist showed up at the dojo excited to learn aikido, George Leonard shares in his terrific book The Way of Aikido.
He quit after three classes.
How come? He certainly didn’t lack athletic prowess.
Rather, the Olympian didn’t like the feeling of not making enough progress.
“Nobody – I repeat nobody – is going to look good after only a few classes,” George writes.
The … continue reading
