The Happiness Equation

January 15, 2016
A search for "simple models to decide what to do" to be happy. "I wish that I had let myself be happier." So runs one plank in an Internet meme listing the five greatest regrets of the dying. Enter popular TED speaker and Institute for Global Happiness founder Pasricha, of Book of Awesome series fame, who observes, "Being happier is the biggest challenge you face every single day at work." And at home, at the grocery store, and everywhere else, it seems, though for some reason we tend collectively not to make effecting that happier-making a high priority. Perhaps we thrive on misery, but perhaps, too, we just don't know how to do so. Pasricha, counterintuitively, opens by saying that the trick is not to do great things and achieve great success that will lead to happiness but instead to be happy, which will yield great works and achieve all the success a person might want. Counterintuitive, yes, but not if you consider deeply his observation that happiness is "based on how we see the world" and, moreover, that there are plenty of specific things a person can do to adjust his or her attitude northward. In that regard, one of the author's more useful cross-cultural examples is the Okinawan notion of ikigai, which loosely translates to "the reason you wake up in the morning," whether to grow wealthy or to do good in the world. A reason to get up is a very good thing, particularly for retirees, who, to trust Pasricha, would seem to be particularly miserable--good reason, he argues, not to retire. What else not to do? Spend a lot of time monitoring email, for one thing.... Some of the book is New Age pabulum and some painfully common-sensical. But some of it is very good and well worth a look.

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February 1, 2016

Perhaps ever since the Declaration of Independence asserted that all people deserved the right to pursue happiness, we have been on a quest to do just that. Mindell, registered pharmacist, MH, PhD, and author of several books on the importance of food and vitamins on the brain, posits that negative ions (invisible mood enhancers) provide relief for sufferers of depression, asthma, and heart disease. Using abundant research, he suggests a list of negative-ion devices to employ for better all-around health. Pasricha ("Book of Awesome" series) sets forth a more psychological approach: that one has the power to manage his or her attitude toward circumstances despite the inability to control events themselves. In order to help shape reluctant attitudes, the author encourages engaging in such activities as random acts of kindness, 30-minute walks, and unplugging from e-data. Empathetically, he shows how to gain self-acceptance, feel passionate, and master important relationships. VERDICT Both authors define different pathways to the same goal--happiness. While Mindell focuses on the physical aspects of achieving wholeness, Pasricha provides the insight that while people aren't in command of everything that happens in their lives, they can respond as they wish. Taken together, the two titles supply a great recipe for a contented life.

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