by HappyQuotient | Aug 31, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
If you are of a certain age, it’s probably happened to you: You walk into a room and forget what you came for. You misplace your car keys. Again. And although you try and try to remember the name of that acquaintance in front of you, your mind goes blank. Oh no, you...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 31, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
If you are of a certain age, it’s probably happened to you: You walk into a room and forget what you came for. You misplace your car keys. Again. And although you try and try to remember the name of that acquaintance in front of you, your mind goes blank. Oh no, you...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 30, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Every parent wants to raise a kid with a conscience—someone who’ll do the right thing even when no one is watching. But when the road to online integrity is riddled with cyberbullying, cell phone cheating, sexting, and other risks, trusting your kid to be...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 29, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Where I grew up, work sucked. My parents were always drained and exasperated, and never felt financially secure enough to relax. Overwhelmed by unreasonable demands and terrible toilets (my dad was the local school district plumber) and hardened by a sense that nobody...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 28, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty crushed by all of the bad news these days. Frightened children separated from parents at the U.S. border; politicians involved in money laundering and sex scandals; gun violence in schools. Reading these stories makes me feel...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 27, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Some days, I can see how profoundly anti-social technology makes my family, adults and teens alike. We joke that our kids get “screen stoned”—spacey and despondent, or irritable and aggressive. We may laugh, but it isn’t that funny. I know what all that screen...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 27, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Some days, I can see how profoundly anti-social technology makes my family, adults and teens alike. We joke that our kids get “screen stoned”—spacey and despondent, or irritable and aggressive. We may laugh, but it isn’t that funny. I know what all that screen...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 24, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
What are your hopes for the new school year? Maybe you want to get better at handling the day-to-day stresses of the job, or be more patient with yourself and your students. One teacher-friend I know says her hope for this year is to learn to “soften more and more...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 23, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Poor sleep can kill your social life. UC Berkeley researchers have found that sleep-deprived people feel lonelier and less inclined to engage with others, avoiding close contact in much the same way as people with social anxiety. Worse still, that alienating vibe...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 22, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
If you practice meditation, you probably spend a lot of time training your focus—on the breath, the body, or your wandering thoughts and feelings. But if you only train focus, you may be missing out on some profound benefits. Another valuable skill is called open...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 21, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Are you engaged at work? If not, don’t worry—87 percent of people worldwide report not feeling engaged on the job. Many of us don’t expect work to be something we enjoy; it’s called work for a reason, right? We feel it is normal to “check out” during the day and head...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 20, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
“Nature deficit disorder” is a modern affliction. With more people living in cities, working in high-rise office buildings, and becoming addicted to their innumerable electronic devices, many of us are indeed experiencing a nature deficit. This is true for children...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 17, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Have you seen Eighth Grade? It’s a new film about Kayla, an awkward, isolated, and endearing teen girl who courageously makes her way through the last week of middle school. My daughter Megan just finished middle school herself—and with great relief. It was a time...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 16, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Maybe it’s happened to you with a stranger at a party, or with a casual acquaintance at work. If you’re really lucky, it’s happened to you during a job interview, or within minutes of meeting the roommates your college assigned you. You clicked with them. It can...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 15, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
You might know Abby Wambach as one of the most celebrated soccer players in the world, a World Cup winner and Olympic gold medalist. But in a commencement speech earlier this year to the “bad-ass women” of Barnard College’s class of 2018, she hinted at a phenomenon...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 14, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Sometimes, compassion can seem like it’s in short supply. But there are ways to increase the amount of compassion in the world—and inside of ourselves. Researchers consider compassion to be a skill that can be sharpened, similar to a muscle that can be strengthened...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 14, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Sometimes, compassion can seem like it’s in short supply. But there are ways to increase the amount of compassion in the world—and inside of ourselves. Researchers consider compassion to be a skill that can be sharpened, similar to a muscle that can be strengthened...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 13, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
For some students, school is not just a place of learning and growth but also a refuge from abuse. Data suggest that, on average, every classroom has at least one student affected by trauma. According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, close to 40 percent...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 10, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Who hasn’t been affected by the divisive nature of our political discourse these days? Friends, neighbors, and family of different political persuasions won’t talk to each other about controversial issues for fear of causing offense or being shunned. Meanwhile, the...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 9, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Do you take your partner for granted? Our Happiness Guinea Pig, cartoonist Gene Luen Yang, imagines a life in which he never met his wife. source https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/partner_for_granted
by HappyQuotient | Aug 8, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Today is International Cat Day. Cora will probably start the morning like she does any other: by climbing on my chest and pawing at my shoulder, demanding attention. I will sleepily lift up the comforter and she’ll snuggle underneath it, sprawled at my side. For...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 7, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Americans seem awfully divided these days. Everywhere I look, I see signs of antagonism and conflict between groups—and many politicians seem intent on making it worse. Whether it’s presidential nominee Hillary Clinton calling Trump supporters “deplorables,” or...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 6, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
With the 2018 midterm elections looming, the stakes are high in American politics. Republicans aim to maintain control of Congress, and Democrats seek to win key elections to flip both chambers. Several new grassroots campaigns—largely organized by high school...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 3, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Recently, my adult children let me know that when they have children, they want me to be involved in their care. I was thrilled, but also humbled. Will I have the energy? How will I balance my work? And what if I make a misstep? Many people my age delight in their...
by HappyQuotient | Aug 2, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Are you stuck ruminating about the past? Legendary pro-skater Tommy Guerrero tries looking at negative events from a different perspective. source https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/getting_some_perspective
by HappyQuotient | Aug 1, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Ask someone to recount a time they felt lonely, and they’ll undoubtedly have a story to share. You might hear about the college freshman away from home for the first time. Or the new mother feeding her baby in the dark stillness of 4 a.m. “Most people feel lonely at...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 31, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
One of your best friends hosts a party without inviting you; your romantic partner seems oblivious to your attempts at conversation; work colleagues make important decisions behind your back. How long do you usually stay upset after these events? An hour? A day? A...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 30, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Mr. B was breathing fast in his sleep, slumped to the side with an oxygen mask on. The Emergency Department doctor noted his repeated visits for advanced emphysema—and that he continued to smoke. I scanned his chart, felt frustration well up, and walked out of...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 27, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
One of the most poignant scenes in season two of NBC’s This Is Us is when Kevin—a former high school star quarterback and homecoming king turned failing actor struggling with addiction—returns to his hometown to receive an honored alumni award. In his acceptance...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 26, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Do you find yourself looking at your phone when you’re supposed to be paying attention to a friend? As our Happiness Guinea Pig, The Takeaway’s Tanzina Vega trades in her technology for some old school listening. source...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 25, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
When I first moved into my (now) spouse’s house in 2001, she didn’t want to include my name in our answering machine greeting. Because of our big age gap and same-sex relationship, she was justifiably anxious about how her parents would react to my having moved in; so...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 24, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
If you have any teenagers in your life, you’ve probably been witness to the emotional rollercoaster that is adolescence. You may have a hard time keeping up with all their ups and downs, with emotions shifting from extreme elation one minute to utter despair the next....
by HappyQuotient | Jul 23, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Arthur Aron had recently read about the importance of celebrating your partner’s successes when his inbox pinged with an email. It was the editor of a top scientific journal, announcing that a paper he had collaborated on with his wife Elaine Aron—which she thought...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 20, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
For more than two decades, Tamara Afifi, professor of interpersonal health communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara, has studied how families communicate with one another in stressful situations. Divorce or extreme financial hardship can be...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 19, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Many of us avoid chatting with strangers – isn’t small talk tedious and dull? Listen as our happiness guinea pig discovers its surprising benefits. source https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/shouldnt_hate_small_talk
by HappyQuotient | Jul 18, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
“You are unimaginably cruel. I could never have done something like that to you.” One of my clients—we’ll call her Sara—received that in a nasty text from her ex-husband, who was angry because their daughter, a young adult, had excluded him from a...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 17, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Mindfulness meditation proponents often tout it as a way to create a more compassionate society. But that claim seems a bit dubious upon first glance. After all, meditation is an internal affair—focusing on our own experiences, emotions, and thoughts—and people...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 16, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
“I disagree with myself.” This is what a third-grade boy said in front of his math class during a discussion about even and odd numbers. He believed six was both even and odd. When one classmate presented counterevidence, he considered her point. “I didn’t think...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 13, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Fred McFeely Rogers was a shy, somewhat awkward, and sometimes bullied child growing up in the 1930s. After going to college for what he called his “first language”—music—he prepared to enter seminary and study for the ministry. But on a visit home for Easter, he saw...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 12, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
source https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/change_your_mind
by HappyQuotient | Jul 11, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Ever wonder why we get a warm feeling when we come home? Or why laughter makes us feel so good? Or why, even though exercise is good for us, so many of us tend to avoid it? If so, you may want to pick up Dean Burnett’s book Happy Brain: Where Happiness Comes From, and...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 10, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
How often have you had the following conversation at work?How are you? Good. You? Fine. It is a script we stick to even if we are dying inside. It’s hard to build real connections with your colleagues if you never get beyond superficial chit-chat. And yet people who...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 9, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
There is nothing like a great book to help you lounge in a beach chair in some exotic locale, or simply sit on your porch on a Sunday afternoon. Great fiction isn’t just entertainment. Novels can make us more empathic and help us navigate our complex social world,...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 6, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
White Americans are very good at avoiding the subject of race. “I don’t see color—I treat everyone equally” is a common way to dismiss complaints about white privilege and systematic bias. New research reveals a large and growing group of fellow...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 5, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Did you know what you wanted when you were in high school? Our teen guinea pig takes on the challenge of figuring out her purpose in life. source https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/want_to_do_with_your_life
by HappyQuotient | Jul 5, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Did you know what you wanted when you were in high school? Our teen guinea pig takes on the challenge of figuring out her purpose in life. source https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/want_to_do_with_your_life
by HappyQuotient | Jul 3, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
We’re in a laboratory with a three-year-old child. As part of the experiment, we ask the child to share her colorful stickers with a puppet—but she doesn’t do so fairly. For the researcher, this is completely expected and developmentally appropriate. But for the...
by HappyQuotient | Jul 2, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
As citizens of the 21st century, we face many problems that come with an industrialized and globalized world. We’re confronting climate change and poverty in the midst of plenty; wars and political instability are driving millions of people to leave their homes and...
by HappyQuotient | Jun 29, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
The police were concerned. They had investigated diversity in their large U.K. force and discovered that when female officers and staff reflected on their time being pregnant, only 39 percent felt supported by their managers. In collaboration with the police, my...
by HappyQuotient | Jun 28, 2018 | GGSC, Happiness, Health, Inspire, Wellness
Would you rather swim with sharks or give a speech before thousands of people? Discover how this week’s happiness guinea pig tackled one of his many fears–and lived to talk about it. source...
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