My first read of The Happiness Advantage was in 2012, around the same time I came across the book StrengthsFinder 2.0 and its related strengths assessment. I am not sure which spawned which but the two are more closely related than I knew at the time as both have roots in the Positive Psychology movement. Dr. Donald O. Clifton, developer of the StrengthsFinder® Assessment, challenged the focus on dysfunction by asking “What will happen when we think about what is right with people rather than fixating on what is wrong with them?” Shawn Achor, author of The Happiness Advantage makes the point that the study of human behavior focuses on the average behavior or outcome and “if we study merely what is average, we will remain merely average.”
Point made. Point taken. Both men and others in the field as well, have created a movement focusing on what is right with our lives and how our outlook, in Mr. Achor’s case, can significantly impact the results we achieve. The motivational speakers of yesteryear, Zig Ziglar, Dr. Denis Waitley and others, were on the right track with the trainings, seminars and cassette tapes (thank you Mom & Dad!) Yet only in recent years have we had the scientific studies to back up what these speakers and many more intuitively knew.
Mindset – particularly a positive one – has much to do with one’s success.
My heart delights at all the material that is available today and I hope to be a “dot-connector” for you to pull it all together. The premise behind The Happiness Advantage is that happiness is the precursor to success and not the other way around. Many of us trudge through life thinking and saying “I will be happy when ___________.” You fill in the blank. The house is paid off, the kids are in college or out of college, you get the big promotion, etc. As Mr. Achor shares in the book, we now have the scientific research to demonstrate that our brains are hardwired to perform at their best not when negative or even neutral, but when they are positive. If your drive for success sacrifices happiness then you are undermining your efforts. So how do you get the Happiness Advantage?
There are seven key principles:
- Retrain your brain to capitalize on positivity
- Adjust your mindset to become more fulfilled and successful
- Learn to spot patterns of possibility
- See failure and suffering as opportunities to learn
- Overcome emotional hijacking brought on by the rational brain
- Make small adjustments to create lasting change
- Invest in your social circles – the greatest predictor of success
You’ve heard this all before haven’t you? Mr. Achor has more elegant terms for the seven principles described above but I will leave that for your discovery in the book. What matters not is the term but the actual practice of the principles for which he provides examples, stories and ways to implement. Get a copy of the book or the audio version for the car. Combine the principles of The Happiness Advantage with execution in your strengths and be happy as you accelerate your performance.