by Javier Munoz
In a previous post, we described the relationship between happiness and willpower, and this time, we will go deeper into the thesis of happiness as an expression of your energy level. The authors of Willpower conducted an experiment where they invited two groups of students to sit at a table with several options: freshly baked cookies, chocolates, and a bowl of radish. The first group was allowed to eat the cookies and chocolates, and the second less fortunate group, was only allowed to eat the radish. Naturally, the students in the second group had to use a large dose of…

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One of the indictments of civilizations is that happiness and intelligence are so rarely found in the same person. – William Feather
While many people would agree with William Feather’s statement, this is not a true statement, according to a 2012 study published in Psychological Medicine.

In fact, happiness is significantly associated with a higher IQ. Those in the lowest IQ range (70–99) reported the lowest levels of happiness compared with the highest IQ group.

The study of 6,870 people showed low intelligence was often linked with lower income and poor mental health, which…

The post Catalyzing Happiness – Is it Possible to be Smart AND Happy? appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

by Svetlana Saitsky
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNf6SqTM-p8&list=UUGccviEIk6of9qftN0be5hA&index=1

As a 16-year-old girl, I discovered salsa dancing on a tiny beach in Panama. I observed the chemistry between the dancers, the movement of the bodies, and felt the rhythm of the Latin beats - it was all so beautiful and inspiring. On that beach in Panama began a love affair that has lasted over a decade and has taught me so many lessons both about dance, and about life.  Here, I’m inspired to share 12 life lessons salsa dancing has taught me.

1.     Trust your…

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by Mehdi Kajbaf
Our Everyday Happiness feature stories are about how the search for happiness has shaped who we are and how we live. This series is open not only to regular Delivering Happiness contributors, but to guest posters from the Delivering Happiness movement, Very Happy People, and… you. If you are interested in telling us about how happiness works in your life, please contact our Creativity Curator: lindsay@deliveringhappiness.com.
I have actively taken a pay cut in each of the last three jobs I've worked in, and never been more creative, motivated or happier.  Small caveat, I…

The post Everyday Happiness: Trading Time for Money isn’t Good Enough appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

by Laura Garnett
I was working with a client recently, and she was lamenting how she has been working too hard. She enjoys her job but is craving balance with her personal life. Unfortunately, it’s a challenge that I see and hear about all the time.  The question is, how can one achieve that balance, and can hard work equal happiness at work?

I commonly see three scenarios related to working too hard:

1. You love what you’re doing but you simply have too much  to do. You enjoy your work so much that you lose sight of other aspects of your life. The challenge is balancing that out…

The post Can Hard Work Equal Happiness? appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

My last Delivering Happiness blog post about people who are amazing despite their age was a real pleasure to write. Honestly, I had so much fun doing research to find incredible people that I couldn't limit myself to just three inspiring examples. In case you’re wondering, I actually discovered a total of nine (yes, NINE!) people whose talents are unique given how young or old they are.

With that, here are three more people to inspire you. Stay tuned for my next blog post in which I present the last three individuals who prove that age really is just a number.

Jackson Murphy, film…

The post Wisdom for a Happy Life: Age Really IS Just a Number (Part 2) appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

by Javier Munoz
We have all met persons that seem to have the natural gift of living their life with rock solid positivism even when facing hardship. In fact, recent studies indicate that our capacity to be positive has a strong genetic component. However, Dr. Daniel Gilbert, Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, has found that we all have the ability of generating happiness emotions intentionally, which he calls Synthetic Happiness. What is remarkable is that Synthetic Happiness has the same physiological and neurological qualities as the sort of spontaneous natural happiness that…

The post The Happiness Habit appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

by Svetlana Saitsky
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5luT1PimuFo&list=UUGccviEIk6of9qftN0be5hA&index=1
A friend of mine is a psychologist with a unique ability to listen to me ramble on for long periods of time and then untangle everything by saying something simple, true, and which captures the essence of my dilemma. A few days ago we were talking about some of my current confusion, as it pertains to my career and love life. After I finished speaking, she looked at me and said, “ so in summary, you are looking for balance but…”

“But what?” I asked. “Exactly “ she…

The post Black and White… and Bright! appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

Guys, I gotta admit, I LOVE Denzel Washington... and it seriously makes this whole story even better if you imagine him as the professor giving the lecture. Just sayin'
How many of those ubiquitous chain emails did you get today? You know the ones I mean, they usually have some kind of cautionary tale, with an admonition at the end to "forward this on to everyone you know!"  I pretty much only get emails like this from my mother anymore, and I almost always delete them without opening (shh... don't tell her), so when I saw this story pop up on my Facebook feed, I almost ignored it as…

The post A Parable for a Modern Life appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

by Anthony Lee


“Be true to your (weird) self. Live with passion and purpose.” – Delivering Happiness Core Value #1

The first of the 10 Delivering Happiness Core Values reminds us of a simple yet often overlooked principle: true happiness comes from being our natural selves. It means devoting our time and energy to doing something we love, something that makes us very happy. When we experience joy from doing what we love to do, that feeling becomes motivation to do that thing well, which in turn has a tremendously positive impact on others. This is true even if we do something…

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Most people are in crisis – being OVERWHELMED and STRESSED is the norm. I speak to and work with lots of groups and I'm always hearing the same stories of fatigue and overwork. We all know we should take care of ourselves, but we rarely do it. For our happiness, health, and sanity, isn't it time we made self care a priority?

“The best community service I can offer the world is to stay safe and sane.” Liz Gilbert, Author Eat –Pray-Love

Michelle Morris, Author of The Cherished Self, talks about how important it is that we cherish ourselves not as an afterthought but a priority.…

The post Self Care Is NOT Selfish Care appeared first on Delivering Happiness.

by Laura Garnett

“What is your most valuable contribution at work?  What is it YOU do best?” How many times have you been asked this type of question? And how many times did the question leave you with sweaty palms, wishing you had studied your notes more and feeling as though your response sounded as generic as a description of what you had for dinner last night?

What can be even more disheartening is feeling that although you know deep down that you bring special value to the table, you are somehow unable to explain it. There are those fleeting moments when you can almost…

The post Align your Most Valuable Contribution to What You ACTUALLY Do Best appeared first on Delivering Happiness.