NCET Biz Tips: Take Time to Learn Happiness
NCET helps you explores business and technology
By Mikalee Byerman
When we think about the concept of “learning,” many of us likely travel back to high school or college. We recall sitting in a lecture hall, poring over books, absorbing the nuances of government, physics — or worse yet (for me, at least): calculus.
I would argue that few of us immediately associate “learning” with “happiness.”
But happiness can be learned. Actually, happiness should be learned, yet we spend very little time dedicating ourselves to the practice. Evidence suggests modern brains are overwhelmed with negativity, but just a few tweaks can teach our brains to expect (and reflect) positivity, well-being or whatever you call your general sense of happiness.
And better yet, you can customize your own curriculum. Here are a few ideas to start.
1. Watch Shawn Achor’s TED Talk — “The Happy Secret to Better Work”.
This powerful presentation is a funny and fascinating introduction to positive psychology, a relatively new discipline positing “…that if we study what is merely average, we will remain merely average.” So positive psychology examines what makes exceptional people so exceptional.
One result from Achor’s research: “90 percent of your long-term happiness is predicted not by your external world, but by the way your brain processes the world.” Thus if we train our brain to process in a more positive way, we achieve long-term happiness.
2. Take the Values in Action (VIA) assessment.
Our brain works better when we practice daily the things that fulfill us, so this free, scientific survey on character strengths provides those insights. I was stunned to learn my “top value” according to this instrument was “appreciation for beauty/excellence,” for example, but this insight inspired me to relocate my home office to a room featuring expansive bay windows overlooking nature.
Studies show happiness increases and depression decreases when a person uses his or her signature strengths regularly — even if they fall outside of daily tasks associated with work.
3. Take a course at Yale for free.
And this just happens to be Yale’s most popular course ever. “The Science of Well-Being” is available to the masses (410,000+ students already) online through Coursera. Professor Laurie Santos offers a step-by-step process using science-based principles to develop a happy, meaningful life. You’ll learn surprising insights about yourself throughout the class that you can apply at home and at work.
Ready to train your brain even further for success? Overall, keep in mind that success doesn’t lead to happiness, but instead, happiness leads to success. A brain set to “positive” leads to greater displays of intelligence, creativity and energy — which all leads to success.
Learn more tips about how to train your brain for success during NCET’s Biz Bite luncheon on Sept. 25 at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. NCET is a member-supported nonprofit organization that produces educational and networking events to help people explore business and technology. Register for the event and get more info at NCETbite.org.
Mikalee Byerman is VP of Strategy for the Estipona Group and Just the Positive, a website dedicated to positive local stories.