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Shawn Achor

The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles that Fuel Success and Performance at Work

Summary

Most of us are taught from a young age that if you work hard you will become successful, and once you become successful, then you'll be happy. The only problem is that this formula is flawed and we know today that happiness is the precursor to success, not merely the result

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Key Takeaways
  1. The 7 Principles
    1. The Happiness Advantage - because positive brains have a biological advantage over brains that are neutral or negative, this principle teaches us how to retain our brains to capitalize on positivity and improve our productivity and performance
      1. Meditate
      2. Find something to look forward to
      3. Commit conscious acts of kindness
      4. Infuse positivity into your surroundings
      5. Exercise
      6. Spend money on other people and experiences (but not on stuff)
      7. Exercise a signature strength (do what you’re good at)
    2. The Fulcrum and the Lever - how we experience the world, and our ability to succeed within it, constantly changes based on our mindset. This principle teaches us how we can adjust our mindset (fulcrum) in a way that gives us the power (the lever) to be more fulfilled and successful
      1. The trick is to stop thinking of the world as fixed when reality is, in truth, relative.
      2. Have a growth rather than a fixed mindset
    3. The Tetris Effect - when our brains get stuck in a pattern that focuses on stress, negativity and failure, we set ourselves up to fail. This principle teaches us how to retrain our brains to spot patterns of possibility, so we can see - and seize - opportunity wherever we look
      1. When we train our brains to constantly look for and focus on the positive, we profit from three of the most important tools available to us - happiness, gratitude and optimism
      2. This habit, like any other habit, takes time and hard work to make second nature 
    4. Falling Up - in the midst of defeat, stress and crisis, our brains map different paths to help us cope. This principle is about finding the mental path that not only leads us up out of failure or suffering, but teaches us to be happier and more successful because of it 
      1. There is always a "third path upwards" and your only task is to find it. Success is not about never failing, it is about getting back up, using our downward momentum to propel ourselves in the opposite direction. With this skill, you can capitalize on setbacks and adversity to become even happier, even more motivated and even more successful
    5. The Zorro Circle - when challenges loom and we get overwhelmed, our rational brains can get hijacked by emotions. This principle teaches us how to regain control by focusing first on small, manageable goals, and then gradually expanding our circle to achieve bigger and bigger ones
      1. Small successes can add up to major achievements and they all begin with focusing on one small, manageable circle/goal/task at a time
    6. The 20 Second Rule - sustaining lasting change often feels impossible because our willpower is limited. And when willpower fails, we fall back on our old habits and succumb to the path of least resistance. This principle shows that by making small energy adjustments we can reroute the path of least resistance and replace bad habits with good ones
      1. Willpower is ineffective for sustaining change because it gets worn out as it is a limited resource. Humans are energy saving creatures and will always tend towards the path of least resistance. What you have to do is lower the "activation energy" for habits you want to adopt and raise it for habits you want to avoid. The easier, more visible, more palpable the habit, the more likely you are to follow through
      2. The key to creating good habits is ritual and repeated practice until the actions become ingrained in your brain's neural chemistry. And the key to daily practice is to put your desired actions as close to the path of least resistance as possible. Identify the activation energy - the time, the choices, the mental and physical effort they require - and then reduce them as much as possible
    7. Social Investments - in the midst of challenges and stress, some people choose to hunker down and retreat within themselves. But the most successful people invest in their friends, peers and family members to propel themselves forward. This principle teaches us how to invest more in one of the greatest predictors of success and excellence - our social support network
      1. Spend quality time with a group of people you respect, who push you and who can anchor you during difficult times. These relationships must be fostered even during your most stressful, difficult times
    8. These 7 principles are not only great for you personally but become multiplicative when their ripples influence others to change and adopt happier, healthier habits and lifestyles.
What I got out of it
  1. A good, quick read on some basic principles to achieve happiness. The importance of investing in strong social ties, especially when you're down and vulnerable and how perception is your reality

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