The Happiness Advantage: How a Positive Brain Fuels Success in Work and Life

By Shawn Achor

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • An engaging, deeply researched guide to flourishing in a world of increasing stress and negativity—the inspiration for one of the most popular TED Talks of all time

“Powerful [and] charming . . . A book for just about anyone . . . The philosophies in this book are easily the best wire frames to build a happy and successful life.”—Medium

Happiness is not the belief that we don’t need to change; it is the realization that we can.

Our most commonly held formula for success is broken. Conventional wisdom holds that once we succeed, we’ll be happy; that once we get that great job, win that next promotion, lose those five pounds, happiness will follow. But the science reveals this formula to be backward: Happiness fuels success, not the other way around.
 
Research shows that happy employees are more productive, more creative, and better problem solvers than their unhappy peers. And positive people are significantly healthier and less stressed and enjoy deeper social interaction than the less positive people around them.
 
Drawing on original research—including one of the largest studies of happiness ever conducted—and work in boardrooms and classrooms across forty-two countries, Shawn Achor shows us how to rewire our brains for positivity and optimism to reap the happiness advantage in our lives, our careers, and even our health. His strategies include:
 
• The Tetris Effect: how to retrain our brains to spot patterns of possibility so we can see and seize opportunities all around us
• Social Investment: how to earn the dividends of a strong social support network
• The Ripple Effect: how to spread positive change within our teams, companies, and families
 
By turns fascinating, hopeful, and timely, The Happiness Advantage reveals how small shifts in our mind-set and habits can produce big gains at work, at home, and elsewhere.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Sep 14, 2010
• ISBN: 9780307591562

Reviews for The Happiness Advantage

[nnschiller · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Whoops.

Original rating and review was for Duhigg's Power of Habit, not Achor's happiness Advantage.

I'll just say that while I enjoyed and appreciated this book, it does much less well at the things that made Duhigg's work stand out.

[gwbranecky_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book.

[kassilem · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the second book I've read for my parents/me book club. When I saw the book my mother had picked out, at first I was not impressed. A book on happiness? Who cares? I can be happy later, now I have to work towards a career. I clearly didn't realize all that happiness can do. And I was clearly following the traditional formula for success. This book may have changed my look on life. The idea that happiness creates success, not the other way around, seems like common sense when someone tells it to you but people don't believe it. This book will make you believe it. It's almost silly, really, how easy it is. Achor is also very charismatic on the pages and is a good writer. I love that he pulls in stories and anecdotes from his and other's lives to help explain the research behind this idea. He funny and well-researched. I enjoyed reading his seven principles and will most likely try to implement some of them in my own life. I could do with some more happiness. The physical benefits alone will be worth it. This is not a book that the reader can fly through; it caused me to think a lot about my years of unhappiness and my times of being genuinely happy. There was some self-reflection, and then there was some happy planning for the future with these principles in my head. This is a great book in my opinion. I highly recommend this book to any and everyone.

[amimariscal · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I listened to this audiobook and it was one of the best books I've ever heard! I will definitely be listening again periodically. Shawn Achor narrates it himself and he is warm and fun to listen to.. (Check out his TED talk on Positive Psychology.) There are tons of practical tips and activities that can easily be learned and integrated into your life... If any book can be considered life changing, this is one of them! And the information is all backed up with scientific studies and funny, endearing stories.

[writerfidora · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed listening to this audiobook, which was read by the author. It has good information and great ideas on how people can apply its principles in the workplace.

[amylofgreen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If you want a little more happiness in your life, this is the book for you. A perfect mix between academic statistics and Texan colloquialisms. Unpretentious and uplifting. This is a must read for all.

[adriennejs · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed listening to this audiobook, which was read by the author. It has good information and great ideas on how people can apply its principles in the workplace.

[jpsnow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a worthy addition to the popular works about positive psychology. Achor describes 7 key concepts, all of which are straightforward, relevant and practical. The two strategies that most influenced me were the "Tetris Effect" and the "20-Second Rule." In the Tetris Effect, he describes how much our brains can develop a specific orientation or thought pattern - not just in attitude but even how we approach and see problems. In the "20-Second Rule," he provides the practical advice to make habits easy to form by putting the desired objective within easy, visible reach.

[msblog_mom · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Think that once you're happy, you'll be successful? Positive psychology posits the exact opposite, that happiness breeds success. Shawn Achor uses his professional consulting and extensive research (the notes detailing his sources are 6 pages long!) to support his principles for helping you choose happiness. I've read it - once - but already plan to read it again. His TED talk on the topic is one of their Top 10. I have already recommended his work to several other people and starting his second book.

[stacy_chambers-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is one of a growing library of research that supports what I've believed for the past few years: that happiness is a skill you can develop. What's great about this book is that it doesn't make the assumption that something is inherently wrong with the reader, and gives readers practical advice on small things they can do to get their brains more tuned in to being happy. It's a state of mind—one that does come more naturally to some than others—but it's also a muscle that can be exercised. And there's no "secret" to it, as many so-called self-help books suggest. It's just doing small things, such as writing three good things down every night, whether it's three good things that happened over the course of a day (no matter how small) or three things you're grateful for. Doing this can help rewire your brain to see more possibilities, more insights, and help you see and seize upon opportunity when it arises. It's a book that's geared more toward helping leaders and business people make their workplaces happier, but I think anyone could benefit from reading this. Also, he's funny.

[tandah_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great book, with fresh ideas and a great writing style. I petered out a bit towards the end (so perhaps could have been 50pp shorter) but recommend as it has some good advice.

[fouad_bendris · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another fascinating book! He describes how happiness foster spirit’s productivity hence the way to succeed! Well - I had some doubts at the beginning and therefore my curiosity was at the paroxysm all along the reading! All examples given were very practical and useful – nobody could context … Magic world where we can understand and study how psychology and happiness are pretty nice combination into the brain – this could potentially help at least to better surround procrastination stuff and who knows – The road to success!Definitively I must read and nice asset ;-)March, 24 th - 2013

[gshuk_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great summary of the relevant research in happiness written in an entertaining way. While he does re-frame some ideas there is nothing really new.

[life2reinvent · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Think that once you're happy, you'll be successful? Positive psychology posits the exact opposite, that happiness breeds success. Shawn Achor uses his professional consulting and extensive research (the notes detailing his sources are 6 pages long!) to support his principles for helping you choose happiness. I've read it - once - but already plan to read it again. His TED talk on the topic is one of their Top 10. I have already recommended his work to several other people and starting his second book.

[mogie_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Research which documents mental attitude being very relevant to success. Practical advice on how to change your thinking. Good for managing people and also gaining an understanding of past experiences and reactiions.