Brian Rosenthal's Weblog

“Happiness from the Inside Out”

The most surprising thing about Harvard University was that most people there were not happy. Here were people who were over-accomplished, by any standard, for their age, and you would think they would be happy, if not obviously, than more deeply when you got to know them. Surprisingly, I found the reverse. The more I got to know people, the more I realized that a great many people there (not all, of course), were deeply unhappy, an unhappiness that extended beyond frustration, beyond temporary stress, beyond temporary self-doubt in their rite of passage.

But, some were. What could have caused it…

Many of their parents and teachers concluded that because they were unhappy, they were depressed. They were sent to psychiatrists, given medication and counseling, and were expected to perform as a “normal” happy student. Very few seemed to benefit from this. They were merely transformed from unhappy college students to unhappy college students on medication.

My own personal journey has been filled with much happiness, and like everyone many disappointments. This book is not intended to be a book on abnormal psychology. This book is about normal people and why sometimes, we are happy, and why other times we are not.

A recent US News and World Report suggested the idea

Chapter 1: What I learned from my grandmother

Chapter 2: How to figure out what is important to you

- Tradeoffs Real and hypothetical.

Chapter 3: How to spend your time on the important things.

Chapter 4: Happiness drives success, not visa versa.

Chapter 5: Happiness from the Inside Out

Chapter 6: Living from the Inside Out

Happiness is worth thinking about. Nothing else is as important to your health, your relationships with your spouse, your relationships with your children, your longevity, your general well-being, your effectiveness at your career.

The happiest people I know are people who approach life from a solid core. They start with the core fundamentals - making sure they have good habits, good relationships with their family, their spouse, their children.

They make sure that they have their finances in order.

Then, they move outwards toward their friends.

Then, with a solid core, they reach out to be effective in their jobs, etc.