What is Happiness and How Can We Feel It?

We read in article on Monday called "Happiness Revisited" and the author talks about what happiness really is and why so many of us westerners think we achieve it, but really don't. Here are the reflection questions.

1. When do you feel most happy? 

    Well, that's a hard question to answer after reading this article. I'm currently recreating my schema for what happiness really is and what "leads" to it. The author of the book Happiness Revisited defined happiness as a condition that must be prepared for, cultivated, and defended privately by each person. It's how we interpret outside events. 

       So, with that said, I feel I am most happy whenever I am with my youth group. I always feel completely at ease whenever I'm around them, in part because I've known a good amount of them for a long time, but because the environment is just happy and well-meaning. It's a state I (usually) naturally enter without having to effort fully change my mindset. 

2. Reaction to article: 

Loved loved loved it. I'm very into Psychology and any state of being is interesting to read about. Sometimes I feel a little resistance to science telling us how we should react to things and what needs to happen to achieve a certain outcome. Sometimes things "should" be left to the unknown, the mystical. But I mainly think it's so cool to having a science dedicated to our brain and how we can live better lives!!! The answers can be so simple! (Simple sounding, that is). I love the distinction between optimal experience and happiness. Because so many of what us Americans' lives are like that s doing everything we can to achieve success and optimal experiences, which we think equate to happiness. 

3. Where are you on the flow chart?

I would currently say I'm in A2 (developing skills and bored) or A4 ( developing skills and good amount of challenges, which is the optimal zone), right now. There are some weeks when I'm doing enough that I feel very productive and not overwhelmed, but excited about what I'm doing. There are others when I feel very motivated to get things done and end up not doing much, anticipating that what I have to do will be boring/feel like work.

4. How has my flow chart zone changed throughout my project?

Whenever I set goals for myself and remind myself that it is imperative that I accomplish them, that's when I'm in the A4 zone. My first real experience with that was about three weeks ago. Whenever I blow things off, thinking I can do extra work later, that's when I enter the A2 zone. Feeling bored and unmotivated (and eventually, I drift into the A3 stage, which is stressed).

5. How can you achieve flow?

Like I said before, setting weekly goals for myself is the key to being and feeling successful and productive, and going with the flow.