How to Attain Authentic, Enduring Happiness Summarized by Elie Levy, Ph.D. based on work by Martin Seligman, Ph.D. Should you be entitled to experience positive feelings? How do we sometimes take shortcuts to feeling good? Do these represent short cuts? drug/substance use addictions to chocolate/other foods shopping sprees loveless sex Exercising our personal strengths or virtues makes it more likely we’ll experience positive feelings. If our volunteer activities/philanthropy call on our personal strengths– your whole day improves. Our well being comes from engaging our strengths and virtues --- our life is now imbued with authenticity. Research demonstrates that when we’re in a positive mood others like us more and friendships, love and coalitions are more likely to cement. Happy people remember the good in their life and forget the disappointments in their life. Happy people rely on the tries and true positive past experiences whereas less happy people are more skeptical. A positive mood jolts us into an entirely different way of thinking. It generates creative, tolerant and constructive thinking. A positive mood/thinking detects not what is wrong but what is right. Positive emotions, high energy produce playful behavior and play is deeply implicated in building physical resources. Healthy people have better health habits, lower blood pressure and stronger immune systems than less happy people.

Can you make yourself lastingly happier? Happy people are more satisfied with their jobs than less happy people. These individuals are likely to be perform better at work and have higher incomes. Happy people endure pain better and take more health and safety precautions when threatened. Happy people have a rich social life, spend less time alone and enjoy socializing with others. Remember that when we’re happy ----- we’re less self-focused, we like others more and want to share our good with others. Can you make yourself lastingly happier? Here’s the formula: H = S + C + V H = enduring level of happiness S = set range C = circumstances of your life V = factors under your voluntary control Happiness in the present The pleasures are delights that have sensory and strong emotional components like ecstasy, raw feelings, orgasm, delight, exuberance and comfort. Involves little if any thinking. The bodily pleasures are immediate, experienced through senses and are momentary through touching, tasting, smelling, seeing and hearing. The bodily pleasures fade rapidly and its hard to build your life around bodily pleasures. Compared to bodily pleasures, the gratifications are activities we very much like engaging in and not usually accompanied by raw feelings. Gratifications engage us fully, are immersed and absorbed in them; create psychological growth, require skills and effort, challenge us The gratifications last longer than the pleasures and involve more thinking and they do not habituate easily. The gratifications are undergirded by our strengths and virtues. Gratifications are about enacting personal strengths and virtues.

Enhancing the Pleasures You can increase the amount of momentary happiness in life through: 1) savoring: spacing your pleasures over time To promote savoring consider the following: Sharing with others Reminiscing Take pride in your accomplishments, self-congratulation Absorption; lose yourself in an activity, not think but sense Virtues and Strengths Wisdom and knowledge: strength/route: curiosity, interest in world, love of learning, open mindedness, critical thinking, ingenuity, practical intelligence, social intelligence, perspective taking Courage: valor and bravery, perseverance, diligence, industry, integrity, honesty Humanity and love: kindness, generosity, loving and allowing oneself to be loved Justice: citizenship, duty, teamwork, loyalty, fairness and equity, leadership Temperance: self-control, prudence, discretion, caution, humility and modesty Transcendence: appreciation of beauty and excellence, gratitude, hope, optimism, future mindedness, spirituality, sense of purpose, faith/religion, forgiveness, mercy, humor and play, passion and enthusiasm.

Think on These Things 1) What personal accomplishments give you the most pride? 2) Can the life you’re leading today provide you with more accomplishments like these? 3) What 3 qualities would you most like to be associated with your reputation? 4) What is left for you to do in your personal and professional life? 5) What drives your curiosity and makes you want to learn more? 6) What skills do you have now that you didn’t have 5 years ago? 7) What types of people bring out the best in you? What characteristics do they bring out? Where do you find these people in your life? 8) What are some uncertainties you are currently experiencing? 9) What allows you to live with the uncertainties in a way that feels right? Any other questions you think I need to add?