Science says happiness leads to a long life, good health, resilience and good performance. On average, people who consider themselves happy live nine years longer than people who consider themselves unhappy.
Psychologist and Professor Ed Diener from the University of Illinois says there are three vital ingredients to happiness:
♦ Family and friends – the wider and deeper, the better. Friendship has a protective effect on our health.
♦ Finding meaning –a belief in something bigger, a sense of spirituality or a philosophy of life.
♦ Working toward and making progress on goals we find interesting, and which use our strengths and abilities.
Why doesn’t money make us happy? Because we adapt to pleasure. When we’re attracted to things that give us short bursts of pleasure – from a candy bar to a Corvette – the effect quickly wears off. We adapt less quickly to more meaningful things such as friendship and goals.
(I bet you have 10 unanswered emails from friends and family sitting in your inbox. Answer one everyday – even “I’m thinking of you!” will suffice – for ten days and see what happens. Let me know.)
Kathleen Connally 