15 Mar 2 articles from The Happiness Institute’s free eNewsletter (out this morning)
The Happiness Institute sends out a free eNewsletter every Monday morning and it’s jam-packed with practical information, inspirational quotes and useful updates on matters relevant to happiness and positive psychology. If you’ve not already signed up, do so on our home page now…
And here are two examples of what we publish form this morning’s edition…
Right vs Happy – by Lou Tice (The Pacific Institute)
I want to ask you a question with far-reaching implications: Would you rather be right or happy? Today, we are going to look at several possible answers.
Some people sacrifice a lot in order to be right, because they think the way to be right is to make other people wrong. They spend a lot of time and effort doing so. Of course, people who are set up to appear wrong or poorly informed aren’t crazy about the feeling, so those who make others look bad, also make themselves disliked.
People who need to be right don’t take many risks either, and they avoid uncertainty like the plague. Many times they would rather lie than say, “I’m not sure,” or “Gee, I don’t know.”
On the other hand, people who would rather be happy than right, don’t care much about how smart they look. They realize that we are all on a learning curve. They know that the best way to help each other grow is to stop competing and start cooperating.
You see, life isn’t about showing other people up It is about helping each other to see.
Each of us gets to decide for ourselves what and how much we want to look at, and whether we are willing to give – and accept – help. We also get to choose whether we are going to be right or happy.
Sometimes we can do both. But if you had to pick just one, which choice would it be?
Letting go of grudges
This interesting exercise, from Fishful Thinking, is designed for children but we believe it can easily be modified for adults and for other, similar contexts. Read on and let us know what you think…
On a piece of blank paper, draw a circle in the center of the page and record a few words that capture the essence of the situation that caused your child to hold the grudge (e.g. Maggie went to Sarah_ã_s house instead of coming with me to the movies.) Then, fill the rest of the page with blank circles _ã_ 15 or more. The object is for your child to fill each of these circles with a word or phrase that describes:
- something about the person for which your child is grateful _ã_ something he/she said, did, etc.
- something important to your child about the relationship _ã_ small things, big things, current things, historical things
- something about the person or relationship that brings your child happiness
After you and your child have filled in each of the circles, use the questions below to discuss what your child has experienced through this activity.
- How have your feelings changed about the person and situation?
- What positive aspects of the relationship and person do you now remember?
- What, if anything, might you want to say to the other person?
- What, if anything, do you want to do about the situation?
We hope you find this helpful and most of all, we hope it helps you find more happiness in your life. Spread the word and spread the happiness!