MetaChat - Five a Day for Happiness.

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09 December 2008

Five a Day for Happiness. Listened to BBC Health Check yesterday, and they interviewed two researchers who study happiness. At the end, Sam Thompson shared a simple "recipe" for happiness, based on the data showing what works - do these five things each day, and you're likely to be happier:→[More:]

1. Connect. Connect with other people.
2. Be active
3. Take notice - be aware of your surroundings and savor the moment
4. Keep learning and challenging yourself
5. Give - give something back

They also noted that experiences contribute a lot more to happiness than goods do - that a vacation or visiting friends did more for happiness than buying shoes, etc.

post by: Miko at: 12:08 | 33 comments

Very cool, Miko, thanks for posting this.

posted by Claudia_SF 09 December | 12:09

Couldn't they have found a way to make it into a handy acronym? CBTKG does nothing for me.

6. Grouse. Because grousing makes me happy!

posted by mudpuppie 09 December | 12:16

A list that does not include Eat Doritos is not complete!

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 09 December | 12:32

Wow. I'm really good at 1, 2, and 4, and I'm not happy. I chalk it up to disposition, but maybe I need to watch my threes and fives.

posted by rainbaby 09 December | 12:39

I'm going to print those out and hang them everywhere. Thanks Miko.

posted by Stewriffic 09 December | 12:42

I'm good at 3 and 5. rainbaby, together you and I make a whole, happy being. You complete me. Or I complete you. Or something.

posted by Stewriffic 09 December | 12:46

These aren't general enough for me. Could we get something even more vague?

posted by stynxno 09 December | 12:59

I don't really do any of these things and I'm pretty happy.

I'm scared to even try anything on the list now.
REMEMBER: TOO MUCH HAPPINESS CAUSES DISMEMBERMENT AND POSSIBLE DEATH.

posted by seanyboy 09 December | 13:03

Connect. Connect with other people.

Other people are the ones making me unhappy.

posted by JanetLand 09 December | 13:22

All 5 in 1 step: Chat up a stranger face-to-face.

posted by Ardiril 09 December | 13:25

Yep. That's the general formula that helps keep me functional. #1 feels difficult beyond the point of being worthwhile much of the time, but a compulsive need for #5 helps a little.

posted by notquitemaryann 09 December | 13:26

It's hard to be active when being inactive is so... comfortable.

posted by loiseau 09 December | 13:28

Aw, stewriffic! How sweet.

posted by rainbaby 09 December | 13:49

All 5 in 1 step: Chat up a stranger face-to-face.

Whilst on the treadmill!

posted by scody 09 December | 13:55

Other people are the ones making me unhappy.

This is a few days old, you may have already seen it:

Strangers may cheer you up (nytimes)

posted by DarkForest 09 December | 13:58

Being a full-time parent means I'm kind of forced to do those things every day. Yet, haven't they done studies that show that people with kids are actually LESS happy?

(The boy plugged in the Christmas lights today. All by himself. "Ta Da!" he said, all proud and oblivious to danger. He's not even 2. Cheesey crepes, that kid's going to give me a G-damn heart attack.)

posted by jrossi4r 09 December | 14:03

6. Poop.

posted by essexjan 09 December | 14:35

Jan, I thought #5 (5. Give - give something back) covered that.

posted by jason's_planet 09 December | 15:45

I think the "connect" has to mean that you are connecting with people you choose to connect with. Spending time only with people you have to be responsible for (children) or who drive you nuts (others) won't do it. And then there's the difference between just being around people and really connecting with them.

I'm a pretty happy person. When I'm not, I chalk it up to being lax on #2. Being inactive is comfortable...but comfort is sometimes the enemy of happiness. I could also do better on #3, I rush too much, and think too much about expectations and plans and not enough about how cool it is to be alive right now and have at least the opportunity to try to be happy and take pleasure in the moment, given that that won't be the case forever.

posted by Miko 09 December | 16:00

3 is the only one I am good at. But I'm also bad at it because it leads to too much innerspace time. I suppose I could learn how to combine 3 with 1. When I was teaching--god, I miss teaching--many days were a 1, 4, 5 trifecta. Now, not so much.

posted by crush-onastick 09 December | 16:02

I'm good on #3 (although it tends to trend to paranoia). #4 I do a lot of just because of what I do all day.

posted by sperose 09 December | 16:27

I do all of those things every day. I'm not happy. Their theory is wrong.

posted by dg 09 December | 16:54

Think of how much grumpier you'd be otherwise. :-)

posted by occhiblu 09 December | 17:06

Last night was big on #1. Memorial service for a friend I grew up with. Big turn out, plenty of faces I haven't seen in decades, a chance to freshen up connections from ancient times. It was a fun, exciting, happy, terribly sad evening.

posted by trinity8-director 09 December | 17:11

I do all of those things every day. I'm not happy. Their theory is wrong.

I haven't listened to the piece, but are they saying that people who do these things are happy, or that happy people do these things? Because obviously there's a correlation/causality question in my mind. Speaking as someone who is fairly happy and, like you Miko, usually is slacking on #2 (or #1) if I'm dragging.

That isad what is going to make me happy this evening is to get in bed with comic books before 6 pm. Go self knowledge!

posted by jessamyn 09 December | 17:35

Do listen to the piece - it's pretty interesting in four or five different directions. This part just struck me because of its sheer simplicity and good sense. In life, a lot of times, I've found that things are a LOT simpler than they seem.

What they are saying are that these things have been shown in studies to increase people's happiness. They do talk about correlation/causation a bit earlier in the interview and how it is difficult to tell sometimes - for instance, married people are on average happier, but is that because happier individuals are more likely to get married than unhappy individuals, or that the state of marriage itself increases happiness? WIth the "big five," though, my impression is that these are things that have been shown to increase the same people's happiness when they do them over when they do not do them. It's not all that detailed, but there are a bazillion links to the researchers themselves if you want to seek the data.

posted by Miko 09 December | 17:43

The Five Keys to Happiness

1. "Connect." "Connect" with other people. Yes, that is what the kids are calling it these days.
2. Be proactive. Never wait until the facts are in before you act. It's better to ask for forgiveness than permission. And it's even better still to skip the whole asking for forgiveness part.
3. Take notice - be aware of your surroundings. You never know what you can use against your enemies.
4. Keep taking drugs and challenging yourself to find new, exciting drugs to take.
5. Give - give something back. After taking everything you want and more than you can possibly use, give something back. Altruism tastes so much better when you're rich.

posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson 09 December | 17:43

Connecting is something that has been a hard issue in my house. We have been trying to form friendships with other couples, and have mostly been striking out. It's been frustrating to think that someone likes one or both of us, and then we invite them to dinner and it gets awkward.

We (as a couple) feel that there's this secret to it that we don't know about.

posted by danf 09 December | 18:40

Interesting how in the podcast they're challenging the idea that more money, once you're out of poverty, doesn't lead to more happiness. Huh. Guess I'd better get back on the money machine again...

posted by DarkForest 09 December | 20:56

The things suggested in the OP do work, for me, mostly.

posted by Doohickie 09 December | 23:14

One of my professors had an alternate (though overlapping) recipe:

1. Get at least 30 minutes of sunshine a day, outside, without glasses or contacts.

2. Be active enough to work up a sweat for at least 20 minutes a day, preferably by dancing.

3. Sing every day, and sing your own name at least five times during your song.

(I feel like I'm forgetting one, but those are the ones that stick with me.)

posted by occhiblu 09 December | 23:20

I haven't listened to the piece, but are they saying that people who do these things are happy, or that happy people do these things?
That was more or less my thinking, although (when I take my curmudgeon's hat off), I concede that there may not be direct causality or correlation - happy people probably tend to do these things more than miserable sods like me, but doing those things makes them happier, or at least maintains their happy state.

Conversely, if less happy people (while I often say that I'm not happy, that doesn't mean that I'm unhappy) don't do these things, they maintain their grumpy status, I guess.

posted by dg 10 December | 03:48

Miko, thanks for posting this. I'm pretty good at all of these things, except sometimes I stink at appreciating the moment.

occhi, that recipe sounds like fun!

posted by LoriFLA 10 December | 07:14

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