MIND: The Key To Happiness

In an inspirational Ted Talk, psychologist Shawn Anchor suggests that we might be looking at the relationship between work and happiness the wrong way round. Most of us work with a mindset that tells us happiness will come as a result of working hard. If we put in effort we’ll find success — and then we’ll experience happiness. But Anchor argues it’s actually happiness itself that inspires productivity. Reverse the formula and seek to put the focus on the effort and not the outcome and let happiness be the by product. No expectations. Why? Because you will experience increased positive emotions because you’ve set your expectations low and allowed the result to be a curious reveal to you. Your body will more likely be flooded with a hormone called dopamine. This in turn makes you even happier — but it also turns on all the “learning centers” in your brain, which allows you to learn, adapt, and find new ways of working. So, relax and learn to love the process and let happiness find you and not the other way around.