Embracing "The Happiness Advantage": My Journey into Shawn Achor’s Seven Principles of Positive Psychology

In the fast-paced field of public health and digital activism, one can easily become lost in the daily effort to bring about change, policy conflicts, and the constant flow of responsibilities. When I grabbed Shawn Achor's The Happiness Advantage, I was seeking a new viewpoint not just to inspire my work but also to change how I approach it. I never expected to come upon a structure for something much more profound sustained happiness that promises to increase my performance, output, and personal satisfaction.

The basic but strong case made by Achor is that happiness drives success; success does not feed happiness. Though it sounds natural, this concept questions most of what we have been taught. Often, we pursue outcomes such as increasing the number of people our campaigns reach or altering government policies thinking that happiness would follow once we meet those targets. Achor flips this on its head.

As I explore these seven ideas, with comments and obstacles along the road, I am learning as follows:

The Advantage of Happiness (p. 44)

Achor starts by demonstrating the biological advantage of optimistic minds. When we are happy, our brains release dopamine, which not only makes us feel good but also enhances cognitive ability. I often feel weighed down since I negotiate difficult subjects like systematic inequality and reproductive health. But Achor's studies remind me that I can work smarter, not simply harder, by deliberately fostering happiness.

Finding happiness in the middle of societal concerns is difficult. But I'm learning to savor little moments of delight, beginning with basic daily gratitude each morning.

Fulcrum and Lever (p. 74)

This idea revolves mostly around attitude. "Our power to maximize our potential is founded on two crucial things: the length of our lever (the potential power and possibility we feel we have)," Achor says, "and the location of our fulcrum (the attitude with which we develop the power to change).” "Am I seeing challenges as barriers or as opportunities to stretch my capabilities?" This is where I will begin to question myself.

Changing the prism through which I see the world is not always simple, particularly when faced with ongoing uphill challenges. One step at a time, though, I'm reframing every difficulty as a learning tool.

The Tetris Effect (p. 88)

After hours of playing Tetris, Achor explains how our minds become locked in patterns, ceaselessly hunting blocks to match. This also holds true for life: if we search constantly for issues, we will find them. But we will start to perceive more possibilities if we teach our minds to search for positives.

In my profession, it’s easy to concentrate on what's going wrong legislative flaws, healthcare issues, obstacles to equality. I'm starting to educate my mind, though, to identify the victories, including the little ones.

The challenge is deliberately moving from a problem-oriented to a solution-oriented perspective. But I hope "positive scanning" gets easier the more I do it.

Falling Up (p. 107)

Any worthwhile job involves failures, setbacks, and difficulty. Achor presents the idea of "falling up"—that is, leveraging setbacks to develop resilience. He notes, "We all know that getting knocked down is part of life; the question is, will we keep falling down, or will we fall up?"

From personal disappointments to unsuccessful campaigns, I have had countless career disasters. Rather than let these events define me, though, I'm starting to see them as stepping stones and ask myself, "What can I learn from this?"

The challenge is to see the lesson in the heat of failure. In retrospect, though, I am starting to see how these difficult times could serve as growth accelerators.

Zorro Circle (p. 123)

Using the tale of Zorro, Achor shows how concentrating on little, doable tasks may result in larger success. Zorro was trained to get back under control by concentrating on a small circle when he felt overwhelmed. The circle grew until he could tackle more difficult tasks gradually.

For me, this idea has been indispensable. Whether I'm working on a new campaign or a difficult advocacy effort, I've started dissecting it into more doable actions.

Especially in public health, it’s easy to attempt to tackle everything at once. But emphasizing little victories keeps me moving forward without feeling overburdened.

The 20-Second Rule (p. 149)

Though it seems basic, this idea is surprisingly powerful: just 20 seconds will help develop enduring habits by lowering the obstacles to starting them. To stop negative habits, make them 20 seconds more difficult to start. I related to Achor's personal account of wanting to learn guitar but always feeling too sluggish to dig it out from beneath his bed. He figured this out by simply leaving the guitar in the middle of the room. Amazing, right?

This relates, for me, to my everyday schedule. I'm already seeing little changes by simplifying the start of the routines I want like organizing my work items the night before or having my water bottle within arm's reach.

Challenge: Sometimes the little behaviors have little effect. But I'm discovering that small things really do add up. This is something I started doing earlier this year, so I am happy to continue through this amazing read.

Social Investment (p. 164)

At last, Achor's studies on the importance of social ties remind me that nobody is supposed to confront these conflicts by themselves. In business and life, he notes, "The most successful people are those who invest in their social support networks." Being a digital media activist makes it easy to become lost in virtual realms, but I am deliberately trying to strengthen ties to the actual world. Whether working with other activists or depending on close friends, I am learning that sustaining this work depends on community.

The challenge is that it’s simple to overlook the value of depending on others in a society that praises independence. I am learning, though, to see seeking help as a strength rather than a weakness.

Motivation for the Road

Deeper reading on The Happiness Advantage helps me see that these ideas are about living better rather than only about reaching more. It is not always simple, though. Spending time to develop happiness might seem like a radical move in a society where pleasure is sometimes equated with surface-level success. Still, the advantages of this practice are great, as Achor shows all through his book.

I invite everyone on similar paths to follow this road with me. Along the way, there will be difficulties changing attitudes, reinterpreting failures, and developing fresh behaviors but the benefits are well worth it. "Happiness is the greatest competitive advantage in the modern economy," says Achor. It’s about prospering in all spheres of life, not only about succeeding at work.

Seeing where this road leads excites me; I hope you will join me in investigating how each of us can "fall up" and achieve happiness regardless of the obstacles ahead.

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