When we all watched the video Ms. Fletcher showed us, the author of The Happiness Advantage, Shawn Achor, talked about his studies on positive psychology I was curious if it could actually work. My skepticism helped me decided to pick this book for book club. Honestly, when I first started reading the book, I didn't believe anything he said. He made it seem like if I follow each principle he talked about, then I would become happy. He would talk about all his experiences trying to teach people his seven principles of positive psychology and I just couldn't accept all the facts. It seemed too easy. In addition, he stated that being positive would fuel success and help with performance at work or school. I was already a negative person and I was doing fine. In my mind, being positive just hurt me because I would get my hopes up,but then something bad would happen and I would be disappointed.
However, during one of the weeks we were reading our books I became very depressed and unhappy. So I decided to read the book to see if it could help. As I was reading, the things Achor was talking about made more sense to me. The people he was describing as negative, I could totally relate to. After that realization I decided to see if some of his principles and techniques worked. For example, one of his principles was The Tetris Effect. He stated that people needed to train their minds to think how they wanted to and eventually our brains will adapt. One technique he talked about that would help make someone more positive was every day write three good things that happened. I decided to try it out and it actually helped me. Eventually I saw positive things around me without trying to look for them and I felt happier. I was surprised that it actually worked. When I finished the book, I decided that I would try and follow every principle. I'm not sure if it is going to work, but it's worth a try.
The only problem I see and have already experienced is the effort to try and change how I look at myself and at the world. It's hard to think of the positive when there is so much negative surrounding me. To think positive and truly be happy, we have to really try. Achor changed the way I thought about the Happiness Advantage and I believe if that if someone really tries and follow each principle then it is possible they can become truly happy.
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ReplyDeleteThat's really good that you're trying to be positive now! It makes me really excited to read the Happiness Advantage and see what I could learn from it. Now, I think that you just need to be positive whether or not your surroundings are positive because as you become positive that energy affects everything around you. I saw this quote online and I thought it might help you out a bit. :-)
ReplyDelete“'Always remember, child,' her first teacher had impressed on her, 'that to think bad thoughts is really the easiest thing in the world. If you leave your mind to itself it will spiral you down into ever-increasing unhappiness. To think good thoughts, however, requires effort. This is one of the things that need disipline –training- is about. So train your mind to dwell on sweet perfumes, the touch of this silk, tender raindrops against the shoji, the curve of the flower arrangement, the tranquillity of dawn. Then, at length, you won't have to make such a great effort and you will be of value to yourself.'”
Hi Avram, I have always been a positive person, I try to see the best in everything because I feel that it's the best thing to do for yourself . I agree that you should find find positivity to any circumstance and be thankful for what you have but I also believe that at some point you should be able to feel sad and not hide how you truly feel because then, it can hurt you even more. This book also came to me in a time when I found it hard to stay positive even though I tried. I tried holding my feelings in and saying that it was going to be fine, I tried following Shawn Anchor's advise but nothing seemed to be working until I let it all out and realized that things were not okay and that I was sad. It wasn't until I let my emotions out until I felt more at ease. Perhaps for people different things will help them to live a positive life,either accepting how they feel, or trying "happiness activities" will help them in what they are going through. I hope that you find your happiness and positivity by using Anchor's methods.
ReplyDeleteInfusing some positivity into our lives can only do good! Following Achor's advice, however, was a bit more difficult for me. I'm impressed that you could do it so easily, and find even a bit of happiness in the book's advice. Just taking some time out of the day to think of something positive may be easier to some, but a bit more tricky to the rest. But I do think it's great that you could come away from that book feeling more empowered than you were before. I wonder what causes some people to feel the effects of the advantage more that others?
ReplyDeleteOh it didn't come easy to me at all. Like the first few days I still saw so many negative things around me but over like at the end of the week I could see some progress. I guess the examples he gave in the book didn't really help me believe but as soon as I saw it in person it surprised me that it could actually work. So I guess personal experiences can help change people see the happiness advantage
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