Written on 22 April 2014 (Year 11)
Edited on 24 June 2018
Rate: 7.5/10
I got to mention, the cover is so cute!!! (also I have a thing for award-winning stickers).
Overall, The Happiness Project is a good self-help book. The first half of the book was interesting but I was getting less engaged as the book was heading towards the end. Nonetheless, Gretchen has taught me a few techniques to be happy. She has also guided me to ponder upon my actions to build a happier atmosphere for myself and the people around me (ironically, I just had a bit of conflict with my mum).
This is really weird, but I felt unhappier as I was reading more of the book. Perhaps I wasn’t REALLY inspired because Gretchen has an ideal life - has a great family, an amazing job (she used to be a lawyer for goodness sake, and now she’s doing what she loves to do),and in a perfectly good health condition. It is odd that she suddenly felt the need to start the project, I wonder what her husband thought when she decided to start her Happiness Project.
Each month she had a different topic to resolve, and I was looking forward to read about the topic of friends, as I have some friendship conundrums. However, as perfect as she is, she didn’t have any friendship problem whatsoever, so that was disappointing. However, the book has corroborated that you can make friends at college or work, and your husband will be your best friend.
The satisfaction you get from finishing the book and closing the back-cover while internally screaming “Yas I'm done!!!” is inexplicable. The excitement of adding one more list to my book review and being able to read another book made me happy.
There has been a trend that I was unaware of until a few days ago (quitting Instagram and Twitter did delay me from the trends). It was called #100dayshappiness challenge where you take a photo of the things that make you happy for 100 days. I will try this in the future (lol still haven't tried it yet - 2018). Oh also, Gretchen’s one sentence journal is a brilliant idea.
These are a few of Gretchen’s techniques to be happy:
GO TO SLEEP EARLIER
“MIllions of people fail to get the recommended seven to eight hours of sleep a night, and one study revealed that along with tight work deadlines, a bad night’s sleep was one of the top two factors that upset people’s daily moods. Another study suffused that getting one extra hour of sleep each night would do more for a person’s daily happiness than getting a $60,000 raise.” (page 19)
EXERCISE BETTER
“Among other benefits, people who exercise are healthier, think more clearly, sleep better, and have delayed onset of dementia. Regular exercise boosts energy levels; (page 21)
“as a minimum of activity for good health, people should aim to take 10,000 steps a day-a number that also reportedly keeps most people from gaining weight.” (page 24)
“Nietzsche wrote, ‘All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking,‘and his observation is backed up by science; exercise-induced brain chemicals help people think clearly.” (page 25)
ACT MORE ENERGETIC
“we often feel because of the way we act. For example, studies show that even an artificially induced smile brings about happier emotions, and one experiment suggested that people who use Botox are less prone to anger, because they can’t make angry faces.” (page 35-36)
GIVE SOMETHING UP
“Refusing to be happy because someone else is unhappy, though, is a bit like cleaning your plate because babies are staving in India. Tour unhappiness isn’t making anyone else happier” (page 216)
Other quotes that have resonated with me
“... I sulked when Jamie didn’t appreciate my efforts, Instead, I started to tell myself, ‘I’m doing this for myself. This is what I want.’” (page 46)
(Yes, always do it for yourself - 2018)
“there’s an intriguing difference in how men and women approach intimacy. Although men and women agree that sharing activities and self-disclosure are important, women’s idea of an intimate moment is face-to-face conversation, while men feel close when they work or play sitting alongside someone.” (page 52)
(Oh so females feel the intimacy by speaking and listening more, whereas males feel the intimacy when you're spending time with them. Makes sense - 2018)
“In fact, studies show that aggressively expressing anger doesn’t relive anger but amplifies it. On the other hand, not expressing anger often allows it to disappear without leaving ugly traces.” (page 64)
(It may be different for everyone but this is true for me. Unless it crosses over the line, I forget about the things that got me mad pretty easily. Maybe because they're irrelevant - 2018)
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