Optimism and positive attitude are the states of mind you need to get through difficult situations.
In a crisis you need to focus on what you can do to make your situation better.
Bad things happen. It’s OK to worry about them.
However, focus on what you can change and try to ignore what is out of your control.
Watch this collection of short videos to get a more positive outlook on life.
Steps for Being Happier Today (1:46)
The five important steps are:
- Accept painful emotions.
- Stop texting while you’re with your friends. Focus on your friends and family. Learn how to truly listen.
- Exercise! The simplest form of exercise you can do is walking. Find out how walking improves almost every aspect of your life.
- Express your gratitude daily — in writing. Daily writing habit helps you think more clearly and keep the gratitude journal.
- Simplify. Here’s what you can do to start simplifying your day.
Big Think Interview with Tal Ben-Shahar (29:23)
Positive psychology is the scientific study of “what makes life most worth living”, or “positive human functioning and flourishing that includes the biological, personal, relational, institutional, cultural, and global dimensions of life”. Positive psychology is concerned with eudaimonia, “the good life”, thinking about what holds the greatest value in life – the factors that contribute the most to a well-lived and fulfilling life. ~ Wikipedia
Check out more video clips on the following topics:
Write It Down: My Best Career Advice (0:59)
Identify the things that you really, really want to do, and then go ahead and do it. You know, life is short. We don’t have that much time. And it’s too short to do what we feel that we have to do; it’s barely long enough to do what we want to do.
- An Im-perfectionists Takes on Career Mistakes (1:16)
- How to Fail Well (2:19)
- The Science of Optimal Love (2:26)
- What Keeps Tal Ben-Shahar Up At Night (1:21)
- Five Ways to Become Happier Today (4:29)
Do We Ever Have a Right to Be Miserable? (4:10)
- The Corporate Guide to Happiness (2:37)
- Is Facebook Making Us Sad? (2:31)
- Psychology That Doesn’t Care What’s Wrong With You (3:34)
- In Defense of Self-Help (2:39)
Tal Ben-Shahar
Tal Ben-Shahar is an author and lecturer at Harvard University. He teaches the course on “Positive Psychology” and “The Psychology of Leadership” with a total of over 1,400 students.
An avid sportsman, Tal won the U.S. Intercollegiate and Israeli National squash championships. He got his Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and BA in Philosophy and Psychology from Harvard.
Tal consults and lectures around the world to executives in multi-national corporations, the general public, and at-risk populations. Topics include happiness, self-esteem, resilience, goal setting, mindfulness, and leadership.