A great talk in favour of what I'm proposing here.
http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2012/wired-for-culture
Just listened to this RSA talk about our evolution and how we have evolved to cooperate and that is what makes us human.
A great talk in favour of what I'm proposing here. http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2012/wired-for-culture
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Q: What is your advice to those who want to be happy?
A: As I have said repeatedly, I have no simple, easy answer that will make everyone happy. Some people with serious problems need to see a therapist and get professional help. And many of us have such deep-grained habits that it won't be easy to change overnight. Plus, we all have our temperaments that will put some limits on how easy it for us to be happy. So there is no magic elixir. Having said this, I think there are some steps people can take to insure that they are as happy as they can be (although nothing will make us happy every moment, fortunately). First, we need good friends and family, and we may need to sacrifice to some extent to insure that we have intimate, loving relationships - people who care about us, and about whom we care deeply. Second, we need to involve ourselves in activities - work, for example - that we enjoy and value. We are likely to be best at things we value and think are interesting. Finally, we need to control how we look at the world. We need to train ourselves not to make a big deal of trivial little hassles, to learn to focus on the process of working toward our goals (not waiting to be happy until we achieve them), and to think about our blessings (making a habit of noticing the good things in our lives). Another good Q from the same site http://internal.psychology.illinois.edu/~ediener/faq.html#SWB Q: OK, so people think happiness is important. But is it really desirable? If we are happy, might we achieve less, be less good citizens, or be just plain dumb?
A: It turns out that, at least in western culture where the studies have been conducted, that SWB (high levels of positive affect, in particular) produces good outcomes in many areas. For example: 1. Happy people on average have stronger immune systems, and there is some evidence that they live longer 2. Happy people are more creative, at least in the laboratory 3. Happy people are better citizens at work - they tend to help others more, skip work less, etc. 4. Happy people are more successful - they earn more income, have better marriages, get job interviews more, etc. 5. Happy people do better in social relationships. They are more sociable to begin with, and other people like them more. They seem to be more successful in leadership work positions. 6. Happy people are better able to cope with difficult situations. 7. Happy people like themselves and other people more, and others like them in return. They are also more helpful and altruistic, on average. 8. Judgment and decision making. It is in this realm that laboratory psychologists have given happy people a black eye. Those in a positive mood have been found in lab studies to use stereotypes more, to be less logical, and to be more biased in their judgments. The well-known "Depressive Realism" hypothesis suggests that depressed people are accurate, and happy people inaccurate, in their judgments. Check out this guys site http://internal.psychology.illinois.edu/~ediener/faq.html#SWB A great little article on a site I just found which is all about Sharing!
Basically it is talking about the value of happiness and how it is being increasingly recognized online. Cool! http://www.shareable.net/blog/why-happiness-is-the-new-currency An interesting article on the problems of large income gaps from the Huffington Post
"I think there’s no doubt that … rising income differences do affect the whole social fabric of society." |
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February 2019
AuthorI'm always finding interesting videos and articles, so I thought I'd share them. Categories |