My Top 5 Life Changing Insights from The Happiness Advantage
Happy September (and almost officially Fall)! As promised, here is part two of my takeaways from the book The Happiness Advantage.
As I sat out on my patio, notebook in hand, The Happiness Advantage in the other, I started realizing I had highlighted way too many significant quotes and insights in Achor’s book to make for a concise and impactful blog post ‘part two,’ so I set out to pick only my top 5 insights (Note: You’ll notice they’re all within 50 or so pages of each other because I didn’t have all day to continue sifting through the rest of my highlights. The silver lining of too many highlights, though- when I revisit this book each year it will feel like a quality visit!).
Life changing insight #1:
“When we are happy- when our mindset and mood are positive- we are smarter, more motivated, and thus more successful. Happiness is the center, and success revolves around it.” (page 37)
So again, success isn’t what leads you to eventual happiness. If you make an effort to be happy with consistent habits (for example, by writing in a a daily gratitude journal, meditating, spending time with loved ones, etc.) you are more likely to be successful with your goals.
Life changing insight #2:
“Students who were told to think about the happiest day of their lives right before taking a standardized math test outperformed their peers.” (page 46)
Along these same lines, Achor also said that doctors who were primed to be happy by being given a piece of candy made more accurate diagnoses. I found that pretty astounding. It really is the simple things. The next time you have a test to take or give a presentation, think of something positive right beforehand to have a better result!
Life changing insight #3:
“People primed with positive feelings experienced a faster recovery from the stress and its physical effects… A quick burst of positive emotions doesn’t just broaden our cognitive capacity; it also provides a quick and powerful antidote to stress and anxiety, which in turn improves our focus and our ability to function at our best level.” (page 49)
This is great news for all of us- who couldn’t use an antidote to stress? After reading this, I have started being more deliberate about daily walks, mediation, and thinking about at least 10 things I’m grateful for each day. I find that if I do this earlier in the day on a regular basis, the rest of the day’s stresses don’t negatively impact me, which means I can keep doing the things I need to do (and if I’m happier, I can do them much more efficiently!).
Life changing insight #4:
“Scientists have discovered that we have far more control over our own emotional well-being than previously believed. While we each have a happiness baseline that we fluctuate around on a daily basis, with concerted effort, we can raise that baseline permanently so that even when we are going up and down, we are doing so at a higher level.” (page 50)
I absolutely love this one. Sometimes I wonder what the point of striving for happiness is when it tends to ebb and flow (no matter who you are), but knowing that there’s a cumulative effect makes me feel much motivated to keep trying (kind of like working out- missing a few workouts won’t ruin everything you’ve already done). I’ve been referring back to this quote for the last week or so. On days when I feel a bit in a funk, I remind myself of how much worse I’d feel if I wasn’t already operating from such a high level of happiness.
Life changing insight #5:
“When researchers pick random volunteers and train them to be more grateful over a period of a few weeks, they become happier and more optimistic, feel more socially connected, enjoy better quality sleep, and even experience fewer headaches than control groups.” (page 98)
This is part of the Positive Tetris effect referenced throughout the book. Unfortunately, most people default to the Negative Tetris Effect (ie. noticing negative things much more easily than the positive), this is an evolutionary survival mechanism. But the good news is that in just a few weeks, you can re-train your brain to default to the Positive Tetris Effect (ie. noticing positive things more than than negative). Personally, I do this by doing The Miracle Morning for 30-60 minutes every morning; this included practicing gratitude, meditating, going on a walk, etc. Everyone should find their own daily formula for ‘training’ themselves to have more gratitude, but once you’ve figured out what works for you, you should notice pretty incredible results when practiced daily for even one week (I’ve experienced it myself!).
I hope you’ve enjoyed the above insights. Please use them to make your life better! To better your relationships, your job, your grades, your goals, whatever it may be.
Happy learning and growing!