A Good Way To Think Happiness Coaching

A happy life is like a piece of music…

The objective isn’t to rush to the end to play the final epic note, nor is it speeding through the introduction or any other part, to get to the chorus or to the outro as soon as possible.

To enjoy music we need to be able to keep up with it all, to be aware of the notes and the beauty within it’s changing movements and vibrations.  

To enjoy life,…

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The Arrival Fallacy Trap

The Arrival Fallacy is the belief that when you arrive at a certain destination, you’ll be happy, as opposed to focussing on enjoying the progression towards the destination. 

The problem is that although you may anticipate great happiness in arrival, arriving rarely makes you as happy as you had expected. 

Why? 

By the time you’ve arrived at the destination, you are expecting to reach it, so it…

The Happiness Blueprint - a free online resource to explain the elements of happiness and some example exercises.

How to make lasting changes

What’s the best way to actually make a positive change? 

Daily routines seem to have so much inertia that it can be just as hard to stop one habit as it is to start a new one.  

And therein lies the secret. We can use a reliable current habit to trigger a conscious effort to perform a new action until it also becomes a routine habit. 

So what’s the secret formula? 

After or Before I [CURRENT…

The Reverse Golden Rule

Most people know about “The Golden Rule”. It says:

 Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself…

But not many people know about The Reverse Golden Rule.

Treat yourself as you would like to treat a friend in your position.

Of course, being kind to one another is great, but being kind to oneself is imperative. This idea of being as kind to yourself as you would like to be to a friend, is…

Well look who’s back with a new post!

I’ve been spending a lot less time online this year to spend more time engaging face to face with people, and so it’s been a while since I shared a Happy Idea with you and it feels great to be back in contact. There’ll be some really nice new exercises, tools, and ideas coming soon.

Another good news is that we still have places available for the 2019…

An Antidote For Pessimism

The Pessimistic P’s are the three central characteristics that we can attribute to any given situation. When the situation is considered pessimistically, we can feel hopeless, that everything is falling apart and that it is our fault. Considering their antidotes can turn that pessimistic outlook into a more hopeful and motivating optimistic mindset.

The Pessimistic P’s classify a situation in…

Motivated by “Yet”

“Yet” is one of the most powerful tools in the motivation toolbox. By looking at progress towards our objectives or resolutions in terms of those things we’ve already achieved and the things that just haven’t been achieved yet, success towards anything becomes inevitable.

Nothing is a failure, it just might not be a success yet. 

The “yet” perspective offers the opportunity to observe one’s own…

Hi!

This week I decided to share an exercise that strengthens the mind’s faculty of optimism. Optimism has been shown to be learnable and trainable, as well as having some influence from genetics and environment. The exercise simultaneously habituates these more positive thought habit patterns to have a lasting impact, e.g. long-term happiness instead of short-term joy.

We developed the “Positive…

Answering these four questions could change your life.

These questions won’t change your life, but their answers really might.

Keep a copy of these four questions, so and make the time to answer them some time. you answer them.  You might want to find a better moment you’ve got at least three minutes without distractions, to think about your answers.

What do I want from life? What is already great in my life at the moment? What could probably be…

Why Magnets Never Worry

You will never see a worried or anxious magnet. A magnet stays true to itself, aligned to its core. It freely shares its merits with the other things around it, and inevitably, those that share similar traits are attracted to it.

A magnet doesn’t pretend to be a pin, to fit in with the other pins. It knows what it is and is fully what it is. A magnet is a magnet. Bold, confident, and by being as…

Questions for happier relationships

At the end of a typical day, how often does the question, “How was your day?” lead to some inadvertent complaining?

Our daily lives are filled with the conversations that form the bedrock of most relationships. Having more positively framed conversations leads to more positive relationships.

To encourage more positively framed conversations we need to start them with more positively oriented…

This Year’s Happy Ideas

Hi!

I have exciting news!

After sending over 200 unique “happy idea” emails over the last few years ─ some are still on the blog, many more are extended, referenced and explained in my book ─ a few months ago, I suddenly stopped writing them…

So to each of you 500 subscribers – Sorry about that! But there is a good reason…

After running A Good Way To Think from dozens of countries over the last 4…

As we welcome in the new year with wishes for happiness, and many new resolutions, I want to share some recent research from the British Journal of Health Psychology which can help clarify how to make your resolutions last!

Not surprisingly, improvements in our well-being appear to primarily come as the results repeated actions. ie. Want to learn a new language or sports — practice it regularly.…

Hi!

Studies have proven, that contrary to popular belief, neither female nor male brains can perform complex multitasking. Instead, the brain switches its focus from one activity to another, involving around 0.2 seconds between the activities where it is focusing on neither.

During this transition phase, the brain releases a small amount of dopamine, which is part of the reward system of the…

Hi!

Read the short sentences below…

May I be well in body and mind. May I remember I am loved. May I remember I am filled with love to share. May I be safe from inner and outer dangers. May I be at ease, be peaceful, be happy.

If you didn’t read them slowly enough the first time – read them again, with intention in each word.

Awesome! You’ve basically done a very light “Loving-Kindness”…