Week of Happiness: Day 2 - Can you trust your intuitions?

Welcome to?Day 2! How was the?gratitude intervention? We hope it brought a boost of energy to your day! Today's?Mind Mishap?is focused on the veracity of our strongest intuitions.

Mind Mishap #2 - Our mind's strongest intuition is often wrong.

"Trust your gut." We hear this all the time. While true in some cases, it can often lead us astray.

For instance: which of these two tabletops is larger?

Did you say the right table? Well, let's see if you were correct.

It turns out that they are the same!

Now, you might be asking yourself: how does this pertain to well-being? Well, we often think certain things will make us happy. Case in point: Money! A landmark study from 2010 shows that happiness levels really do not change much after $75K / year. Yes, more money can increase happiness but marginally (think, like, 1 point on a 100 point scale for an increase from $100K to $600K / year). So, while we think money will make us happy, our "gut" (read: intuition) is often wrong.

Maneuver Strategy for Mind Mishap #2 - Spend wisely:?

On the flip side, some scientists have shown that money can buy happiness in one of two ways. Try making money moves (in a new way) today!

1. Give Back?- Studies show that using our money to help others can really boost our happiness. And it doesn't have to be "getting your name on a building" kind of money. Try something simple like paying for the coffee of the person behind you. Send a Venmo to a friend who has a big project this week. Anything that sounds good to you!?

2. Purchase Experiences -?Instead of buying a new "thing" or material good, try investing your money in an experience you can remember. For example: instead of buying that new shirt, try spending money on a date night or taking a close friend out for dinner. When we use our money for experiences, we get large happiness boosts compared to buying another thing.?

'Till tomorrow!???