The true contents of happiness are stated in the article “A Formula for Happiness” by Arthur C. Brooks, the president of the American Enterprise Institute. Brooks states that people realize life and view happiness depending on genes, one-time events and basic values: faith, family, community and work. He pays special attention to the last one. According to Brooks, meaningful work and success considered as passion can make people happier. Brooks cites as an example Franklin D. Roosevelt’s words: “Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money;…
In the article In Pursuit of Unhappiness from The New York Times written by Darrin M. McMahon, the author argues that, “Suffering was not our natural state. Happy was the way we were meant to be.” In other words, he believes that happiness was already in us, we were born to be happy. Another year end and here we all cheering for a happy new year, but will it or it’s just a demand. During this time of the year, happiness shined on every street, displayed on everything and everyone, and so much that the holiday season became the nest of happiness.…
Achor defines happiness as, “the experience of positive emotions - pleasure combined with deeper feelings of meaning and purpose” (Achor 39). When the definition is put into those terms, I can really understand that I’ve settles for less as my definition of “happiness”. My definition of happiness is almost more accurately a definition of “content”. I am merely satisfied with my life. I, like so many others, have fallen into the trap of believing true happiness will come with success. Based on Achor’s research, this idealism is completely false. His research suggests that happiness causes success. In this section of the book, Achor goes on to say that, “happiness makes us more thoughtful, creative, and…
In the article “In Pursuit of Unhappiness” (2005) by Darrin McMahon who writes for the New York Times, he claims that the reason we are unhappy is because what we are told makes us happy, actually doesn’t. He talks about how when you think about being happy, all it ever does is make you unhappy because you start thinking about why you are unhappy and also how we are told that the holidays are always jolly and that it is because we are told they are. McMahon wrote this because he wanted people to know the truth and to help better themselves. He also wrote this article to anyone who wishes to read it. My opinion is that his claims are not true.…
The current age that the world lives in is known as the “Information Age”; also known as the Computer Age, or the Digital Age. This name derives from the shift to technology usage and its rapid advancements. Today, however, the world turns to technology more than ever. despite technology’s convenience and aid, it can also be destructive to a society. In the essay, “The Future of Happiness”, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s erudite tone and parallelism reflects his assertion that the advancement of technology comes with consequences.…
Cheerleading is one of my most defining life experiences. The sport allowed me to explore not only my leadership qualities, but also my own mentorship abilities. From a newbie to cheerleading in middle school, I grew and developed into a role model on my cheerleading team in high school.…
Brent Strawn, a religion professor, believes that many people in modern day see the pursuit of happiness as “‘[having] to do with ‘seeking it’ or ‘going after it’ somehow.’” However, in the 1700s, the pursuit of happiness was not seen as just practicing how to be happy, but actually obtaining it. Marcus Tullius Cicero once said, “‘What then is freedom? The power to live as one wishes.’” The Founding Fathers believed that everyone had the right to be truly happy not just attempting to be. Happiness was not about self-satisfaction or stupefied pleasure, but more of living life to its full potential; it was a choice. Sadly, in today’s society happiness is not a choice for all. Those in poverty, or facing discrimination in one form or another, do not always have the choice to be happy. Mankind has created such a culture that it is almost impossible to truly be one’s self without being persecuted for it. Moreover, the Founding Fathers viewed Great Britain as denying them the right to choose happiness, once again taking away their “unalienable…
The great author Henry David Thoreau once wrote, "Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after." Thoreau's quote is trying to express that in life we sometimes try so hard to accomplish things and gain status that we tend to forget what we are really after is happiness. People often believe that certain things will bring them happiness such as money, jobs, and material possessions. However, after they acquire these things instead of feeling contentment they feel a sense of emptiness.…
In Karl Giberson’s article “The Ends of Happiness” (2006), from the Science & Spirit magazine, he raises the topic of happiness, where he claims that people are now pursuing the means to happiness as an end to itself and have missed the point of life. Although Giberson(2006) has made some valid arguments in claiming that people pursue wealth as a means to happiness, his arguments are largely undermined due to a lack of reliable evidences.…
I assumed that the pursuit of happiness was goal everyone aimed at. It wasn’t till I read Bonhoeffer’s theology that I realized that some people are in the pursuit of unhappiness. In an excerpt from an unpublished novel that he wrote in prison, Bonhoeffer states the complexity of happiness and unhappiness. "Take care not to speak lightly of happiness and not to flirt with unhappiness!…It is not so easy to be unhappy, and may he who truly is not despise and revile him who is happy. Why would you take unhappiness upon yourselves if not to make others happy! Unhappiness comes of its own accord, or rather it comes from God…”(Bonhoeffer, 166) In Bonhoeffer’s theology the only reason anyone should be in the pursuit of unhappiness is to to bring…
I read “Removing Barriers to Happiness” given by Richard G. Scott. Elder Scott talked about how we should give the Lord’s teachings first priority within our lives. If we put the Lord first above everything else including our cultural heritage then we will remove barriers to our happiness. We have been born into earthly families and have been given unique cultural identities. Elder Scott states, “Appreciation for ethnic, cultural, or national heritage can be very wholesome and beneficial, but it can also perpetuate patterns of life that should be set aside by a devoted Latter-day Saint.” We should always put our membership of the church above our cultural identity. We are all children of Heavenly Father for that is our true identity. We should…
MANILA, Philippines—The March 2008 Social Weather Survey, using a standard scale of many countries, found 34 percent of adult Filipinos Very Happy, 46 percent Fairly Happy, 16 percent Not Very Happy, and 3.6 percent Not At All Happy. (In Tagalog, the surveys of Social Weather Stations, or SWS, use “talagang masaya,” “medyo masaya,” “hindi masyadong masaya,” and “talagang hindi masaya.”)…
Flora suggests that these people tend to see beauty and opportunity whereas others may see flaws in the same situations (65). This reflects that it is important, when pursuing happiness, not to expect too much. If people focus too much on searching for happiness alone, their ability to see the simple, good things in life may be at risk. In the article, “Get Out of the Groove,” it is acknowledged that “human beings are constantly trying to make sense of the world” (de Lange). This suggests that people often do not realize what truly makes them happy, because they are too busy focusing on attempting to know everything about the world around them. It is important to acknowledge simple things, rather than overlooking them and searching for a greater factor of happiness. Searching for something that is out of reach, is more likely to decrease happiness, rather than increasing…
If people were to ask themselves, at this very moment, if they were content, would they respond with a joyful yes? If people are not content, what can they implement in their life so they can achieve happiness? Furthermore, Dhruv Khullar in “Finding Purpose for a Good Life. But Also A Healthy one” explains, since the first noted existence of homo sapiens it has been biologically noted, that they were a constantly thriving species. Additionally, finding purpose is not nearly as simple to pursue as it is spoken into existence because it requires introspective with the following commitment to act. Also, in “Negative Emotions Are Key to Well-Being” Tori Rodriguez acknowledges the importance of acknowledging negative…
Happiness is totally different because it is independent on any external factor or circumstances surrounding the employees, it comes from within, comes from the belief of the company or the job mission, in the stage of happiness people are self-motivated and inspired by the idea itself so they spend their time , self-resources to make things happen regardless any compensation .…