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You are here: Home Leisure Arts & Culture Looking for happiness in times of crisis

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21/10/2010Looking for happiness in times of crisis

Looking for happiness in times of crisis Happiness is a universal concept; the difference lies in how people define it. The really hard part is to actually find it. Happiness has become the subject of serious scientific studies.

More than 3,000 scientists around the world are conducting research into the subject. Is there a secret key to happiness? And why is it so important anyway?

Let’s start with the bad news: there is no such thing as a key to happiness, but there are my different ways of becoming happy. Author Leo Bormans appears to have found one of them: his book Geluk, The World Book of Happiness sold out in Flanders in four days. His guide to happiness went on sale in the Netherlands this week, and will eventually be translated into English, French and German.

A hundred scientists from 50 countries writing from their own areas of expertise have made contributions to the book. No woolly language, no individual success stories, but knowledge based on research put down in no more than 1,000 words.

Photo http://www.sxc.hu


DIY

Some people find happiness in a good relationship, others in a long walk in the woods or a fat bank account. Happiness is not a butterfly accidentally alighting on your shoulder. The surprising message is that you can work on it. The time-honoured notion that a person needs to suffer and be an upstanding citizen to earn happiness can be put out with the trash. There is nothing wrong with finding your own happiness.

No less than 40 percent of our sense of happiness and optimism is determined by our outlook on life and the choices we make. Another 50 percent is determined by genetic factors and ten percent is purely circumstantial. According to Leo Bormans, “sitting outside enjoying the sunshine, is not the same as making the observation that the sun is shining. It’s what a person does with that information that determines whether it makes them happy”.

Economic crisis

Happiness is hot. The extent to which people need happiness has everything to do with the economic crisis. “We thought that if we got richer, we would also become happier, but that is not the case.” There is a reason why France and China – the latest in a long list of countries – have introduced a happiness index. An instrument to gauge the state of the environment and the quality of life and well-being.

Book coverAccording to Bormans, in the end it’s not individual happiness that matters most, but the happiness of groups, schools, companies and countries. He argues that the West has a lot to learn from the East, and vice versa.

Bormans hopes his book will eventually spark a Movement for Happiness.

And those among us who feel depressed need not despair: they are under no obligation to be happy. “We are all entitled to our grief and our pain. The question is whether we are satisfied with the life that we lead. The kind of satisfaction which will spark something new through active optimism. It may sound vague, but it’s backed by scientific evidence.”

Willemien Groot
Radio Netherlands


1 reaction to this article

MicheleMoore-Happy1 posted: 2010-10-21 04:34:52

Wonderful article, many thanks!!!

While many people think happiness cannot actually be pursued, we can certainly try to embrace the habits of thought and action that are proven to bring happiness.

Our research showed the happiest people are the more loving people, they are very kind, caring, compassionate and they have high ethics and integrity.

Avoid All Unnecessary, Non-Productive Negativity, Fuel Your Life And Your Work With Fun, Avoid The Fault Finding Feel Goods, Drive Discipline With Desire, Choose Your Mood And Your Attitude.

For explanations and details of our Happiness Habit research see http://HappinessHabit.com and http://Creating-Happiness.com

Michele Moore ~ HappinessHabit.com

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1 reaction to this article

MicheleMoore-Happy1 posted: 2010-10-21 04:34:52

Wonderful article, many thanks!!!

While many people think happiness cannot actually be pursued, we can certainly try to embrace the habits of thought and action that are proven to bring happiness.

Our research showed the happiest people are the more loving people, they are very kind, caring, compassionate and they have high ethics and integrity.

Avoid All Unnecessary, Non-Productive Negativity, Fuel Your Life And Your Work With Fun, Avoid The Fault Finding Feel Goods, Drive Discipline With Desire, Choose Your Mood And Your Attitude.

For explanations and details of our Happiness Habit research see http://HappinessHabit.com and http://Creating-Happiness.com

Michele Moore ~ HappinessHabit.com

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