Hacking

Happiness
M. Ackerman, PhD.

The Great Living Series

Hacking Happiness is from

Great Living Now

greatlivingnow.com

Demystifying Happiness How Happy Are You? Happy Time Happy Relationships Work For Happiness Buying Happy Times Happy Attitude Live Now Active Gratitude Openness & Honesty Happy Body The Body-Mind Connection Food For Happiness Exercise For Happiness Sleep For Happiness

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Demystifying happiness

Aristotle called it the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence. It's why we work. It's why we rest. It's why we look for love. And it's why you are reading this book. From the moment we are born, until our very last breath, we yearn for it, we struggle for it, and we search for it. O Happiness, Happiness, wherefore art thou Happiness? The problem is that sometimes, no matter how hard we try, happiness seems to elude us. What if I told you that there is a direct, effective way to achieve happiness? What if I also told you that there is a straightforward way to attain and sustain it? What if I told you that you could hack happiness? Hacking happiness is no joke. It is all about getting down to what happiness really is and then following the most direct way to achieve it.

When I first learned that psychologists have a formal, reliable definition of happiness, I was very surprised. The definition seemed too simple at first. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized how useful this definition is. We overcomplicate happiness. Happiness is, in fact, quite simple. But in order to hack happiness, we must first understand what it is. Psychologists define happiness as overall life satisfaction. People who are more satisfied with their life experience more moments with positive emotions (called positive affect) and fewer moments with negative emotions (called negative affect)1.

Happiness =

positive moments negative moments

If you divide someones positive affect (number of positive moments) by their negative affect (number of negative moments), youd get their well-being score, which tells us how happy they are. Hacking happiness is about striving to have as many good moments, and as few bad moments as possible. This is the most direct way to attain a high level of satisfaction with life. In this book, I will show you how to have more positive moments and fewer negative ones. Not only will you find happiness, but you will also be able to hold on to it. But first, lets see how happy you already are.

1 Diener, E. and Emmons, R.A. The independence of positive and negative affect. Journal of Personality and Social

Psychology, 47, 1105-1117, 1985.

How happy are you?

If we are going to be serious about improving your happiness, well need some way to measure it. And not just any old way. Well use the method that psychologists apply in their studies. We cant possibly go through and count all of our positive and negative experiences. In 1985, Ed Diener (nicknamed Dr. Happiness) proposed a test that works just as well. It is called the Satisfaction with Life Scale. You can do this test now, and come back to it in several months, after youve had time to practice the tools presented in this book. This will help you keep track of your progress. Using the 7-point scale provided below, rate your agreement with each item. Be open and honest in your responses.
7-Point Scale 1 = strongly disagree 2 = disagree 3 = slightly disagree 4 = neither agree nor disagree 5 = slightly agree 6 = agree 7 = strongly agree

Satisfaction With Life Scale

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. In most ways, my life is close to my ideal. The conditions of my life are excellent. I am satisfied with my life. So far, I have gotten the important things I want in life. If I could live my life over again, I would change almost nothing.

Add up your scores for each question, and then consult the following legend:

30 - 35 25 - 29 20 - 24 15 - 19 10 - 14 5-9 !

You love your life. You like your life. You are satisfied with your life. You are slightly satisfied with your life. You are dissatisfied with your life. You are extremely dissatisfied with your life.

Now that you know how happy you are, it is important to understand that happiness can be improved. You can and will become happier. We will show you how.

SECTION 1

Happy time
Your happiness comes down to how you spend your time. The more often what you want to do aligns with what you are actually doing, the happier you will be. In this section, we will show you three effective ways to align your time with your desires.

happy Relationships
Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who makes our souls blossom. Marcel Proust

What do you think is the number one predictor of happiness? Its not hard to guess. The number one predictor of happiness is relationship satisfaction. That is, the number one thing that happy people have in common is that they are satisfied with their romantic relationships. Humans are social animals. We share a deep, profound need for connection. Many of our moments, be they positive or negative, are spent with our close ones. As such, our satisfaction with our relationships colors our lives. As adults, we are lucky to be able to choose the people with whom we interact. Most importantly, we get to choose our partner, who becomes a key player in our life and happiness. What do you look for in a relationship? I used to have a list. He had to be tall. He definitely had to be smart. He had to have brown hair and blue eyes, hmmm... I guess dark eyes are also OK. The list went on and on, and kept evolving. It took me a long time to realize that no list was ever going to cut it. They all missed the mark. Why do we look for relationships? Its hardly a secret. We are well aware that our search for love stands at the heart of our search for happiness.

Lets return to the definition of happiness and see what it has to say about relationships. Since happiness comes down to the number of positive and negative moments, the best way to predict whether someone will make you happy is to compare the number of positive and negative moments that they bring into your life. In this case, both quality and quantity matter. One good evening every several months isnt going to cut it. Its about your everyday life together. Also, remember that whether a moment is positive or negative is based entirely on how you feel. A positive moment is one in which you experience a positive emotion, and a negative moment is one in which you experience a negative emotion. In this sense, a suitable partner is one who makes you feel good on a regular basis, and rarely brings about bad feelings. Welcome people into your life who bring you many moments of joy, and few moments of pain. This is all that really matters. This simple principle will help you identify a good partner who will make you happy with a lot more accuracy and speed than any other criterion or long winded list. If you are currently in a relationship, take a moment to ask yourself: does your partner make you feel good? Is your time together predominantly positive? If so, then youve got yourself a keeper. While all relationships go through rough times, these should be few and far between. Your overall relationship should be filled with positive emotions. Some relationships consistently bring down our happiness ratio, in which case, we would literally be happier alone. This principle does not apply solely to your romantic relationships. It applies to all those you let into your life. Choose friends that fill your life with good moments, whose company you genuinely enjoy. Fill your life with people who bring happy moments into your life, and one ray at a time, they will light your life with happiness.

Work for happiness

Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. - Confucius

Following relationship satisfaction, the second most powerful predictor of happiness is the quality of our work life.1,2 Why is work satisfaction so important to our happiness? We spend so much time at work that many of our moments - be they positive or negative - happen there. As a result, how much you enjoy your work has a substantial impact on your overall life satisfaction. By the time we come home, only a few waking hours remain. Not only that, but most of us are so tired after work that we can hardly enjoy these hours. As we can see, job satisfaction has a high impact on our happiness. But, what use is this information? Depending on your situation, it could mean several different things. Sometimes, merely the knowledge that job satisfaction plays such a critical role in our happiness is itself invaluable. Some of us find ourselves unhappy, even though everything looks great on the surface. We make a good living, we have a home in a good neighborhood and a loving

marriage - and yet, we find ourselves miserable. Realizing that the root of the problem may rest with our job can be our first step to finding happiness. But, what can you do if you dont like your job? One approach is to try to make your job more enjoyable. Perhaps you would like to move onto a different project, or take on a different role. It might be possible to find happiness at work without making radical changes in your life. On the other hand, you may want to explore the possibility of changing careers. This is a more radical path, but for some of us, this is the only true way to finding happiness. The job of your dreams can uplift you and your happiness to levels that you may now only imagine.

1 Judge, T. A., & Klinger, R. (2008). Job satisfaction:Subjective well-being at work. In M. Eid & R. J. Larsen

(Eds.), The science of subjective well-being (pp. 393413).New York: Guilford.

2 Argyle, M. (2001). The psychology of happiness (2nd ed.).New York: Routledge.

Buying Happy Times

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart. Hellen Keller

We live in a materialistic society. Our society values fancy cars and large houses. Our storage rooms overflow with things. Although it is impossible to use everything we already have, we still feel the impulse to buy even more. This isnt our fault. From the moment we wake up, until we go to bed, we are bombarded by advertisements. We have been convinced that buying will make us happy. But as you may have already noticed, the happiness we get from buying something doesnt last. Within a few short days, all excitement evaporates. This doesnt only apply to small purchases. We get used to a large house about as quickly as we do to a new appliance. In the long run, things simply dont have the ability to make us happy. On the other hand, when you spend your money on experiences, you are buying good moments. This is a direct investment in your happiness. Also, consider spending money on many small pleasures, instead of a few big ones. The idea is to generate as many positive moments as possible.

Instead of going on one expensive vacation per year, build many positive experiences into your daily life. Go for a night out, invest in a hobby, go for that weekend getaway. You can also use your money to reduce the number of bad moments. If much of your time is occupied doing chores that you dont enjoy, consider hiring help. You can then replace those bad, boring moments with moments that are filled with joy.

SECTION 2

Happy Attitude
It isnt only what happens to you that defines your happiness. Your attitude towards life plays a critical role. I will share with you three ways to adjust your perspective that will have an immediate effect on your overall happiness.

Live Now
It is only possible to live happilyever-after on a day-to-day basis.
Margaret Bonnano
We live our lives as if we have to earn the right to be happy. We wait for that big promotion. We wait to find the one. We wait for retirement. Only then, will we finally live happily ever after. But, sadly, the day never seems to come. We are so goal oriented that before a second has passed since our last achievement, were already onto the next big thing. Forget the future. You deserve to be happy right now. Being focused on right now will also help you accomplish your goals. That level of focus always gets the job done. Better still, this attitude allows you to enjoy the reward of your accomplishments. On the other hand, if our brain gets a lot of practice worrying, jumping around from the past to the future, then by the time we meet our next goal, we are so used to worrying that we almost instantly find something else that may go wrong. The vicious cycle repeats. Only you can put an end to it.

Whenever we worry, it is almost always about the future, or about the past. Most of the time, the present moment gives us nothing to worry about. By living in the present moment, you deprive your worries of the very thing that fuels them. The present moment is the only moment that you really have. The past is history, and the future is a mystery. Make this moment a happy one by choosing to stay present. The easiest way to increase your ability to remain present is to practice meditation. Begin by setting a goal - how often and for how long do you want to practice? I would recommend setting the goal at 15 minutes, every day. To reach that goal, lets break it down further. Start with 5 minutes, 3 times a week. After one week, increase that to 5 times a week. Then, after another week, 7 times. After youve managed to increase your meditation practice to 7 times a week at 5 minutes, start increasing the time. You will find, before you even reach the full 15 minutes, 7 times a week, that your focus has increased. Your ability to remain present will also be much better, and will only increase further with time. For help on meditation, there are many great (and free!) sites, videos, and guided meditations available online. Yoga is also a great way of teaching yourself to remain present. The whole practice is about bringing yourself wholly into your body, in the present moment. If you can incorporate one or two sessions of yoga per week with your meditative practice, then you will see results even faster.

Active gratitude
Gratitude is one of the sweet shortcuts to finding peace of mind andhappiness inside. No matter what is going on outside of us, theres always something we could be grateful for.
Barry Neil Kaufman

By now, you already know that the whole point of this book is to increase the number of positive moments that you experience in your life. But what if I told you that there was a way to multiply a single positive moment into many more? There is a way. It is called active gratitude. Active gratitude is the process of actively recounting what is good in life. With practice, active gratitude can prolong the influence of positive events. Moreover, practicing gratitude improves physical health, raises energy levels and, for patients with neuromuscular disease, relieves pain and fatigue1. You can practice active gratitude by keeping a gratitude journal - a diary in which you write things for which you are thankful. Taking the time to count your blessings once a week significantly increases your overall satisfaction with life within just six weeks 2. Before you go to sleep tonight, take a moment to count 10 good things in your life. The first time you do this, you may have a hard time getting all the way up to 10. But, if you do this for a few more days, good things will come to mind effortlessly.

Count 10 good things that happened this very day. As you get used to this exercise, you may be amazed how many good things happen each and every single day, when we take the time to think about them. Try this simple exercise, and it will make a substantial difference to your happiness. And, if you ever have trouble falling asleep, it works a lot better than counting sheep!

1 Emmons, R.A., and McCollough, M.E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: And experimental inestigation of

gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84, 377-389.
2 Lyubomirsky, S., King, L. A., and Diener, E. The benefits of frequent positive affect: Does happiness lead to success?

Psychological Bulletin, 131, 803-855, 2005.

Openness & Honesty

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
Mahatma Gandhi

Some of the most beautiful moments in our lives happen when we are open and honest about who we are. Openness and honestly are some of most effective pathways to happiness. Because we care so much about our relationships, we fall into the trap of trying to please others at the expense of being true to ourselves. Craving acceptance and approval, we pretend that we are a little different from who we really are - sometimes, very different. We say things we dont mean. We pretend to agree when we secretly disagree. We hide who we really are for fear that we will not be loved and accepted for our real selves. Furthermore, much of what we do doesnt correspond with who we are. You may want to rest, but instead stay up late washing the dishes and scrubbing the floor (what if the neighbor drops by and sees this mess?) You crave an evening alone, but agree to go out with your partner anyways. Whats worse, you can be so afraid to rock the boat that you may not even mention what you really want.

This leaves us feeling empty and disconnected. Because no matter how much approval we receive for the masks that we put on, deep down inside we know that it isnt really us. To create meaningful connections with others, we must call upon great courage - the courage to be ourselves. To speak our mind honestly. To share deep from the heart. To show our true selves. This type of openness creates opportunity for real and very deep connections with others. As a result, we know that others know who we really are. This leads to a greater sense of worthiness, as we realize that people love the real us. As our connections with others grow deeper, our feeling of being connected increases, as does our self-esteem and feelings of self-worth. All of this leads to a huge boost in how happy we feel.

SECTION 3

Happy Body
One of the most important portals to happiness is your body. We will discuss the body-mind connection and get you started on your journey to health with three effective techniques you could start applying today.

The Body-Mind Connection

The best six doctors anywhere, and no one can deny it, are sunshine, water, rest, and air, exercise and diet. These six will gladly you attend if only you are willing. Your mind they'll ease. Your will they'll mend. And charge you not a shilling.
Wayne Fields

We tend to view our bodies and minds as separate. Nothing could be further from the truth. You are your body. Your body captures everything you feel during every moment of every day. Your mood is 100% represented by the chemicals in your body. If you are not convinced, just think about what drugs can do to our bodies: drinking, antidepressants and other drugs can radically affect how we feel. You brain contains chemicals called neurotransmitters. They fully determine how you feel right now, or at any other moment. You need enough neurotransmitters, and the right balance of them, to feel good. Drugs, be they pharmaceutical or recreational, work by affecting our brain chemistry.

The good news is that it is often unnecessary to use drugs to influence our happiness. Our minds can be affected through our bodies using much gentler methods, and their effects are much longer lasting. Take care of your body, and you will have a relaxed, happy mind. Below, we discuss three effective ways to bring about happiness by taking care of your body. Learn how to take care of your health, and happiness will follow.

Food For Happiness

Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.
Hippocrates
I was very surprised when I first learned how much food affects our happiness. How to eat is a huge subject. The best diet for you (the one that will maximize your happiness) is based on your own unique physiological makeup. In this chapter, I will explain how food effects our happiness and address the most common dietary mistakes. How Food Affects Your Happiness 1) It proides the raw materials. What you eat affects the chemical balance in your brain. Your food gives your body the nutrients necessary to create the right balance of neurotransmitters, which in turn creates good feelings and makes you happy. 2) It influences the health of our organs. In order to convert food into neurotransmitters, you need healthy internal organs. When our organs are malfunctioning, our body is unable to create the right balance of neurotransmitters - no matter what we feed it. As a result, in the long run, the health of your internal organs is a key player in your happiness. One of the most common dietary errors is to eat in a way that destroys our organs. Its the typical unhealthy diet: too much fat, too much meat, too many sweets, and generally too much food. Too much food, especially processed food, strains our internal organs. Over time, our bodies become unable to convert food properly, an unable to produce a healthy brain chemistry.

The other common dietary error, which is increasingly common today, is to go way off in the opposite direction (and thats what I did - for twelve years). This is when instead of eating a lot of everything, we radically limit our food consumption, either by simply not eating enough or by seriously limiting the types of food that we eat. The problem with this approach is that over time, our bodies become depleted of nutrients and no longer have the raw material needed to make us happy. This is not to say that food omissions cannot be done property. Indeed, at times, health conditions render them necessary. But it takes a lot of research and much care to do that properly. Otherwise, omitting some foods can have serious consequences on our happiness and health. So, how should we eat? I spent many months researching food and what it does to the body. In the end, I came to the conclusion that the traditional, simple, and balanced meal does more for our happiness than just about anything else. What is a balanced traditional meal? Some protein (meat, fish, or beans), some carbohydrates (grains, pasta, or bread), some vegetables, and a little bit of fat. The type of protein, carbohydrates, and vegetables should vary between meals. Below I explain why each component is necessary, what part it plays, and why variety is key. Protein. Proteins are made up of amino acids. These are the raw materials for neurotransmitters. If you dont give your body enough amino acids, it has no hope of creating a healthy brain chemistry. Now, not all protein-rich foods are created equal. Some have a lot more amino acids than others. Some are a lot easier to digest than others. Additionally, the types of amino acids contained in different protein-heavy foods vary substantially. Deficiency in even a single amino acid can have an array of symptoms affecting every part of our body and influencing our mood. On the other hand, consuming too much protein will strain your internal organs, so moderation is key.

Carbohydrates. Carbohydrates help transport amino acids, so that your brain can use them to create neurotransmitters. Carbohydrate rich foods are essential to the process. It works best when protein and carbohydrates are eaten together in the same meal. Whole, unprocessed carbohydrates, such as whole grains, work best because they slow down the digestion process. This gives your body enough time to absorb and transport the raw ingredients to your brain. Fat. Fat has a terrible reputation, but our brain need it to be happy. In fact, our brain is made up of 60% fat! On the other hand, large quantities of fat can spell disaster for our internal organs. The best thing to do is to eat small amounts of fat with a protein, as protein helps digest fat. As with other food, make sure that you vary the type of fat you eat, choosing among natural, unsweetened varieties. Vegetables/Fruits. These aid in digestion, and provide your body with vitamins and minerals that also keep your organs healthy in the long run. Different types of vegetables and fruits contain radically different vitamins and minerals. A deficiency in as much as a single vitamin or mineral can substantially hurt ones well-being, so its important to vary your vegetables and eat them frequently. Final Word of Advice Whenever possible, choose food that is fresh, organic, or local (or all of the above). These are much denser in nutrients. Avoid buying food with ingredients that you cant pronounce. These ingredients are very difficult to digest and will put a lot of strain on your organs. Finally, listen to your body. Be mindful of how different foods affect your health and your mood and adjust your diet accordingly. For me, returning to a simple, varied diet was a life saver. This is what made the biggest difference to my happiness. But I would have never tried this simple advice had I not understood the science behind how diet affects happiness. I hope that this information will help some of my readers restore happiness to their lives.

Exercise For Happiness

Those who think they have no time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness. Edward Stanley
Physical exercise is one of the most effective ways to raise your mood, and, over time, improve your overall happiness. There are many forms of exercise. Try them out, and choose the one(s) you like best. Cardio (exercise that increases your heart rate) leads to the release of endorphins. This decreases stress and creates a wonderful relaxing feeling. Now those are some good moments! In addition, long term cardiovascular training is associated with improved overall health. Remember: you are your body! By improving your health, you are making a positive contribution to your happiness. But dont overdo it. Excessive exercise can overstrain your body and even increase anxiety. Gentler forms of exercise, such as yoga, can be done more frequently. Relaxation exercises help relieve stress. Yoga teaches us mindfulness, helping us to stay focused on the present moment. Make exercise a part of your life, and you will immediately feel how it boosts your mood. Over time, it will make a lasting impact on your overall happiness.

A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctors book.
Irish Proverb

Sleeping your way to happiness

One of the very best things you can do for your happiness is to get adequate sleep. Sleep is when our body detoxifies, restores, and heals. It is when our brain chemistry is restored to a healthy state. When you wake up after a good, restful sleep, youre already happier. Life is easier after a good nights sleep. If you are not getting enough, every bit of extra sleep counts. An extra half an hour of sleep per night, or one more day per week where you can get proper rest can make a real difference. One the best ways to add sleep to your life is to go to bed earlier. But many of us find ourselves unable to do so, no matter how hard we try. One of the main reasons we have trouble turning in at night is exposure to bright light. Watching TV before going to bed confuses your body into thinking that it is daytime. Avoid the use of all light emitting electronics for a least an hour before going to bed. It also helps to reduce the lighting in your bedroom and bathroom at night. The beautiful thing about sleep is that itdoesnttake long to feel its benefits. After a good nights sleep, you should feel the improvement right away. But over time, the healing power of sleep is nothing short of extraordinary.

Continue to learn & grow

If you enjoyed his book, then you will also enjoy the many free articles we have on our website at www.greatlivingnow.com. Our articles span a wide range of topics, from happiness and love, to mindfulness and meditation, to money and productivity. On each topic we discuss, we share with you effective, actionable advice.

About The author

Maya Ackerman, PhD. divides her time between research, writing, teaching, singing, and her family. She has authored over a dozen academic articles, and is a cofounder of Great Living Now. Maya is passionate about personal development, and her mission is to provide others with the tools they need to become the best that they can be. She lives with her husband and son in Pasadena, California.

A note from the author

Thank you for reading my guide to happiness. I believe that happiness is our birthright. I wrote this book to help my readers create a happier, more joyful life. Please take a moment to let me know what you think. Email me a note at maya@greatlivingnow.com. If there is enough interest, I will write an expanded version of this book. Please mention in your email if this is something that would interest you. To your happiness! Yours truly,

Maya

Coming Soon...

Attributions
Demystifying Happiness photo by Camdiluv - view on Flickr How Happy Are You? photo by Camdiluv - view on Flickr Happy Time photo by Abnormalbeauty - view on Flickr Happy Relationships photo by Kevin Buehler - view on Flickr Work For Happiness photo by Bogenfreund - view on Flickr Buying Happy Times photo by World of Oddy - view on Flickr Happy Attitude photo by Indy Kethdy - view on Flickr Live Now photo by Evan Leeson - view on Flickr Active Gratitude photo by Shereen M - view on Flickr Openness & Honesty photo by ShamtiNB - view on Flickr Happy Body photo by D. Sharon Pruitt - view on Flickr Body-Mind Connection photo by Tony Armstrong - view on Flickr Food For Happiness photo by D. Sharon Pruitt - view on Flickr Exercise For Happiness photo by Mash Talker - view on Flickr Sleeping Your Way To Happiness photo by cinnamon_girl - view on Flickr Laugh designed by Nathan Borror from The Noun Project

Disclaimer
All data and information provided in this book is for informational purposes only.Great Living Now and/or the author make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information in this book and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis. Before doing any exercise(s) or health related activities mentioned in this book, or participating in any exercise program, consult with your physician.