The Happiness Hypothesis

I am in the middle of reading a social psychology book called The Happiness Hypothesis: Modern Truth In Ancient Wisdom, and it's pretty interesting. The book examines all kinds of research related to the positive psychology movement, which is...well, it's hard to explain right now. The only problem with reading this is that I find myself pausing in the middle of chapters just to think about what I'm reading and expand on it, which means it's taking longer than expected. I wish I could write a dissertation on more topics than I can count, but I don't know where to begin. I guess I will begin by saying that most of the book offers wisdom that I discovered on my own just in the past year or so and conclude that I don't have enough time or words to write it all here. It took the author 250 pages, after all. I'm pretty sure you can find some pieces of it in my previous blog posts, though.

As a bonus, I found out that adversity is usually most beneficial between the ages of 15 and 25. People older than 30 disproportionately recall events in that time as the most important and vivid events of their lives, because that's when life blooms and we make many of the decisions that will define our lives. The book says, "If there is a special period for identity formation, a time when life events are going to have the biggest influence on the rest of the life-story, this is it." It's scary and empowering at the same time, since I am at the tail end of that window. I have overcome that adversity, though, and the difficulties of the past two years have dramatically changed who I am today. Of course, we all change throughout our lives to some degree, but if this has become my foundation, I can live with that.

I swear the last two years feel more like five, at least. On one hand, I wish I would have had the option of pacing myself, but on the other hand, it would not have been as effective. Dealing with practically everything at the same time forced me to see things in a new way. I found an inner strength that I think will stay with me for the rest of my life, and while I will never have all the answers to life's questions, I have deciphered some pretty valuable ones already. Off the top of my head and in no particular order, I would count these as the most important:
1. Balance is key, and you could not truly appreciate the good without the bad, anyway.
2. Nurturing bonds with people will make you happier than money or status ever could.
3. Your life is what your thoughts make it.
4. Life won't follow a script, so don't attempt to make one. Focus on the present, keep one eye on the future, and see where it takes you.
5. Success in life hinges on your ability to cope with change and work with difficult people.
6. Stepping (or jumping) out of your comfort zone is almost always worth it.
7. Know yourself and be true to who you are. You can spend a lifetime figuring it out.

That covers most of what I've learned in recent years, I think. Not too shabby.