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1-Page Summary of The Happiness Equation
Overview
There’s not just one secret to happiness, says author Neil Pasricha. There are many. In his book The Happiness Equation: Want Nothing + Do Anything = Have Everything (2016), he explains how people can find lasting contentment by simplifying decisions, evaluating dreams and ambitions, and boosting their self-confidence.
A common mistake people make is believing that happiness comes after they’ve achieved success. In fact, it’s the other way around—happiness should be your goal. Happiness isn’t a single achievement; it’s an attitude you can have every day and all day long.
Happiness is a great reward in itself, but it also has other rewards as well. Happy people tend to be more creative and are better at learning new things. A positive attitude can help you live longer and have a brighter career. It can enrich your marriage and make work more meaningful. Success is based on self-confidence and satisfaction with what you already have rather than striving for material things all the time.
One of the reasons happiness is so difficult to achieve is because economic growth depends on consumption. People feel pressure to buy more things in order to be happy, but this actually causes strife and dissatisfaction. Instead, pursuing life with intention and contributing to society are much better pursuits than material accumulation. Having more doesn’t necessarily mean being happier or having a better life. There’s great satisfaction in enjoying what you already have instead of constantly buying new things just for the sake of it.
Key Point 1: Happiness requires conscious effort to overcome negativity.
Happiness is mostly a matter of perspective. Only about 10 percent of it comes from our external circumstances. The other 90 percent depends on how we see the world and what we make out of it. Happy people work hard to cultivate a positive outlook by recognizing that negativity is normal, but that they have to work through those emotions in order to be happy.
Key Point 2: People are more motivated by personal fulfillment than by external rewards.
People set goals to motivate themselves, but they usually don’t achieve them. The result is that people just keep setting more goals and getting frustrated when they don’t reach them. It’s better to focus on personal growth in your work rather than focusing on external rewards like money or status. People who have internal motivation are happier because their happiness comes from the satisfaction of hard work itself, not from reaching a particular goal.
Relying on other people’s approval is a form of extrinsic motivation. It’s not good because it relies on something that you can’t control, like what others think about you. If they approve and give positive feedback, it works well; but if they criticize you, then your self-esteem will be damaged. The way to deal with this is to cultivate self-confidence while still being respectful towards others. Confident people can take criticism because they know their own value.
People are intrinsically motivated to be happy. They find joy in their work, which makes them successful and satisfied. If you want to be happier, you should focus on intrinsic rewards rather than external ones like money or praise.
Key Point 3: No one can control their emotions, but it is possible to control reactions to one’s emotions.
The human brain has evolved slowly in comparison to recent changes in the environment and human society. For example, the amygdala is the area of the brain that coordinates fight-or-flight responses. The amygdala’s function is to worry about survival, so it constantly scans for problems. Thousands of years ago, common problems were different from those people usually confront today; for instance, running away from a predator required an extreme physical response with adrenaline being released by stress hormones. The same happens when we face chronic office work issues now; however, it doesn’t help us much because our brains are not used to such situations anymore.
