One of the most universal spiritual practices is the imitation of a spiritual master as a way to gain understanding and discipline. This is obviously true in the religious sphere, and in the secular world, I think, people often read biographies for spiritual reasons: they want to study and learn from the example of great lives. As a writer, I […]
more about: happiness
Four Ideas To Help You Strengthen Your Friendships, Part II
If you had to pick one single element to a happy life, what would you pick? According to many ancient philosophers and modern scientists, the most essential key to happiness is strong relationships with other people. Many different kinds of relationships contribute to our happiness, and one of the most important is our friendships. In my last post, I wrote […]
Four Ideas To Help You Strengthen Your Friendships, Part I
If you had to pick one single element to a happy life, what would you pick? According to many ancient philosophers and modern scientists, the most essential key to happiness is strong relationships with other people. Many different kinds of relationships contribute to our happiness, and one of the most important is our friendships. My happiness-project resolutions aimed at friendship […]
My Friend’s Personal Motto: First Things First
A friend of mine has a personal motto which she often drops in conversation: “First things first.” I never knew exactly what she meant by that, and finally I asked her.
“‘First things first,’” she explained, “means a lot of things. It reminds me to keep my priorities straight: it’s more important to go to my daughter’s school play than to go to an acquaintance’s book party. It reminds me to make necessary preparations: have breakfast before a job interview. And it reminds me to make time for the things that aren’t urgent, and can get shoved out of the way, but which over time, are very important: make time to exercise. First things first.”
My Latest Trick for Passing Time with Children.
I always like to have a supply of games to use to pass the time with my children. Stuck in a line, stuck in traffic, stuck in a doctor’s office…it’s helpful to have a big arsenal of child-pleasing activities at the ready.
Here’s our latest game, and I have to say, I enjoy it as much as my children. It’s called “Name That Book.”
Do You Acknowledge the Reality of Other People’s Feelings?
One of my very favorite parenting books is How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish. I bet I’ve read that book five times. One of that book’s most important lessons is simple, and it applies to adults just as much as to children: acknowledge the reality of other […]
Are You Trying to Give Something Up?
I realized something very important about myself. With some things, I can’t indulge a little bit. It’s far easier for me to skip cookies, bagels, cheese, and chocolate altogether than it is to have a sensible portion. Turns out, I’m an abstainer, not a moderator. What’s the difference? Abstainers find it easier to give something up entirely than to indulge […]
Want to Be Happier? Check Out These Tools!
I’m thrilled, because after months of preparation, my Happiness Project Toolbox has been unveiled to the world.
As I was working on my happiness project, I stumbled across several methods that helped me to boost my happiness. I wanted to encourage other people to try these tools, and I also wanted to pull them together to make it easier for other people to do their own happiness projects.
Four Tips for Getting Rid of Clothes Clutter.
If your closet is packed so tightly that you can barely pull out a hanger, the best thing to do is to pare down your wardrobe – dramatically. It’s hard! Here are four questions to ask yourself, as you consider whether to keep something or toss or give it away:
How to Make Yourself Happier by Clearing Your Closet.
A few days ago, I was helping a friend clear out her closet (helping friends clear their clutter is one of my few hobbies), and I made a new observation about the nature of clutter. This seems counter-intuitive, but it makes sense: people uninterested in clothes (like me and my friend) are more likely to have clothes clutter than people who love clothes. Why?
