| |
| |
|
Happiness Information |
|
|
|
A Model of Happiness
Everyone I've ever met considers happiness to be desirable. There is a whole wing of psychology called "positive psychology" studying things like happiness. One of the luminaries of this field is Dr. Martin Seligman, who wrote both Learned Optimism and Authentic Happiness. His group publishes a newsletter called Authentic Happiness Coaching Newsletter. The most recent issue of this newsletter discusses a Model of Happiness developed by Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky and others. This model describes our happiness as coming from three components. Our Set Point (50%). This is our natural happiness state. We all know people who seem to always be happy, and others who seldom laugh or seem joyful. Circumstances (10%) Our life circumstances also influence our happiness. Things like winning the lottery or spraining our ankle both influence our happiness, but typically over a short time period. Humans are very adaptable and so major boosts or dips in our happiness are generally short lived. Intentional Activity (40%). For this description, let me quote from the newsletter. "The term intentional activities refers to those thoughts and behaviors that require effort. This effort may be apparent only to us (for example, making a list of goals for the week) or it may be visible to others (for example, doing a favor for a friend). They suggest that intentional activities are the key to making lasting changes in happiness because such activities are more resistant to adaptation (the process by which we get used to something and become unaffected by it). We can deliberately engage in activities that make us happy while varying them enough to ward off adaptation." This brief summary of this model leaves me with two important conclusions: 1. Most people's world views on happiness rest with either Set point (we are either born happy or not) or circumstances (it's easy for them to be happy, look at what they have going for them). Either of these world views is too limiting and fatalistic. 2. We can actively impact our happiness, based on our decisions and actions! If you want to be happier you can take action to do just that - it is in your control! How do you do that? There are many ways you can intentionally improve your happiness. One way suggested by the article is to engage in random (or perhaps intentional) acts of kindness. Make these actions something that benefit others and require use of a personal resource of yours (time, effort, energy, money, food, etc.). Happiness matters to us as individuals. If we are happier we will likely be much more productive as individuals and as leaders of others too! Once we understand that a big part of our happiness is in our control, we put ourselves on track to be not just happier, but more effective productive and move more rapidly towards our potential. Kevin Eikenberry is a leadership expert and the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group (http://KevinEikenberry.com), a learning consulting company. To receive a free Special Report on leadership that includes resources, ideas, and advice go to http://www.kevineikenberry.com/leadership.asp or call us at (317) 387-1424 or 888.LEARNER.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Looking In The Eyes Of Happiness From what you see around you in your daily lives, happiness may appear an illusory state of existence. Do you see true happiness in the lives of those who pass through your world each day? Do you see, and feel, true happiness in your own life, and the lives of your immediate family? Or in your work colleagues, or fellow commuters?The answer, in many cases, will be "no, I don't". Being Together When it comes to happiness, togetherness is probably the most common cause of such feelings.Being together means more than just close proximity. The Voiceless WE count the broken lyres that rest Where the sweet wailing singers slumber, But o'er their silent sister's breast The wild-flowers who will stoop to number? A few can touch the magic string, And noisy Fame is proud to win them: Alas for those that never sing, But die with all their music in them!Nay, grieve not for the dead alone Whose song has told their hearts' sad story,-- Weep for the voiceless, who have known The cross without the crown of glory! Not where Leucadian breezes sweep O'er Sappho's memory-haunted billow, But where the glistening night-dews weep On nameless sorrow's churchyard pillow.O hearts that break and give no sign Save whitening lip and fading tresses, Till Death pours out his longed-for wine Slow-dropped from Misery's crushing presses,-- If singing breath or echoing chord To every hidden pang were given, What endless melodies were poured, As sad as earth, as sweet as heaven!Reflections on 'Voice'My wife and I recently attended a showing of "Rwanda" - an unforgettable and harrowing experience. The Capacity for Happiness and Respectability Humans are liable to experience a variety of afflictions, but they are commonly endowed with a capacity for happiness and respectability. There is no guarantee, however, that they will exercise this capacity at all times and to the maximum, whatever happens. The Art Of Happy Living What do you think about happiness? A philosophical approach to life; an intellectual activity or an academical pursuit. No, not at all, nothing of the sort. 5 Keys to Understanding Why Your Life (probably) Sucks! #2 In Key Reason #1 we looked at how you are working with outdated beliefs. Reason # 2 gives a clue as to why that might be so. Norman Rockwell - The Man Who Created His Own Reality In preparation for a class I taught today, I spent some time this week studying the life and works of American artist Norman Rockwell. His idealistic paintings, portraying the innocence of a simpler time, were featured for decades in publications such as The Saturday Evening Post and Boy's Life. Uncover Emotional Secrets and Live a Happier Life Can you remember a time when you became a little irritated with someone and made a sharp comment that may have hurt, one which you later regretted? Have you ever writhed in the pain of emotional agony over some loss or missed opportunity? Do you recall a time when you felt so overwhelmed by emotion that you withdrew from everything and everyone? In any of these cases to a lesser or greater degree the emotional part of your brain has produced a questionable response or perhaps a response that you may have regretted later.Researchers generally agree that there is an appropriate 'alarm' system in the brain. The Golden Moments in Life This month I'm going to talk about something I've never discussed before. I'll be sharing a technique with you that can help you become a powerful beacon, attracting all the good things in life to you easily and effortlessly. The Underestimated Power of Kindness It was a bright Saturday morning in the late fall. I had stopped at a cafe' to enjoy a cup of coffee and scan the morning newspaper. Finding Purpose and Meaning in Life A friend once said to me, "There is no meaning in life, except what we create". At the time, I thought she was nuts. You...Your Emotions...Your Relations...Your Happiness and Your Life... We are living in an era, where relations' management is at its low. If the IT or ITES/BPO industry is promoting relations among the employees?the short duration of relations is also a gift of it. Boosting Your Success with Six Easy Happiness Tips In what areas of your life would you like to achieve greater success? State-of-mind (attitude towards life and work) absolutely affects your performance and your outcomes. People who stay in jobs they hate, or relationships and situations in which they are chronically unhappy are not only missing out on the joy life has to offer, but are literally putting their health at risk at the same time. Living a Balanced Life - The Real Juggling Act I just read an installment from another self-improvement course that states that celebrities are unhappy because they don't have gratitude for what they have. I disagree. Chasing The Whats Next Are you an adrenaline junkie who is looking for balance? I call people who achieve success, but yet also have a balance in life - Activators.However, a lot of times, as Activators, we become so entrenched in the cycle of doing, fearful that we revert back to our habits as Procrastinators. How To Focus On The Positive Qualities Of Your Relationship The quality of your life has a strong connection with how healthy your relationship with other people is. Do you struggle to make other people see things your way? Well stop trying, because you can't manipulate others. Can Money Buy You Happiness? Well, doesn't that depend on what's causing you to be unhappy, in the first place?If you've just lost a loved one, no amount of money will make you happy, only time and your own attitude will eventually lessen the pain and hopefully bring some joy back into your life.However, if a stack of unpaid bills is facing you each day, wouldn't enough money to pay them, not make you happy? If you are someone you love, needs expensive medical care and you can't afford it, would money not be the happy answer?So, before we adopt some of these truisms about money, we should see how they apply to the reality of the situation. Magickal Baths Taking a Magickal Bath doesn't have to be complicated. It can be as simple as running to your local drug or beauty supply and buying a product that is appropriately scented or contains an herb or essential oil. Happiness What is happiness? If we mean by it a state of fulfillment, when everything is going our way, in terms of results as well as efforts (which requires a providential combination of pluck and luck), then it cannot simply be willed; it is partly, if not largely, a gift of fate.Having said this, even this sort of happiness is a product of positive thinking and positive action, with good fortune lending a helping hand. Joy Is Sexy Joy is sexy because in embracing our joy, we embrace our positive energy and power. Joy is always there, waiting to be reclaimed.
|
| Article List | Index | Site Map |
|
All logos, trademarks and articles on this site are property and copyright of their respective owner(s).
The comments are property of their posters, all the rest is Copyright © 2006 CanadaSEEK.com - All Rights Reserved. |
