Cultivating Happiness

Dr. Martin Seligman, the founding father of Positive Psychology, along with his research team, once conducted a longitudinal study that concluded “Three Blessings” tactic is an effective method for inducing lasting sense of well-being. Another 2014 University of Pennsylvania study independently measured the correlation between 24 character strengths (find out yours from this free survey: https://www.viacharacter.org/) and well-being. Gratitude is the one that has shown to be most correlated with happiness. The second biggest one is Love of Learning.

This makes total sense to me. When we feel unhappy, there is an underlying emotion that makes us feel unsafe, unwell and unsatisfied. Then our stress hormones get cranked up and “fight or flight” response ensue. If there is something that we can do to help us feel safer, better and more satisfied, go for it. But chances are, many things in life are out of our control so a sense of anxiety emerges as a result. At this time, a way to exit the infinite negative feedback loop (you can tell that I am a computer scientist by trade? @_@) is to count your blessings given what you already have, where you already are.

I know it is hard, when you feel overwhelmed by bad news, difficult circumstances, to have the will power and energy to count your blessings. Trust me, I have been there, done it. However, at any moment, we can find things that we should be grateful for. Albert Einstein once remarked: “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle. ” How we feel is largely reflecting our response and perception, less about life itself. This also means when we cannot change reality, and we redirect our energy to change our reaction to the situation, we set ourselves free. Did you just gain some positive energy right there?

Now let’s explore this simple and proven happiness tactic. Each day, at a specific time (either before bedtime, or first thing in the morning), recount three things that went well in the past 24 hours and why. It is helpful to start a Gratitude Journal so you can go back to your own documentation of the little things that brightened your day and reinforce the idea that when you change the way you see the world, you are in a different state of mind altogether.

So say thank you, express your gratitude, whenever you can, and be intentional about it, be specific about it. Well-being will ensue. Have a blessed day!