get happier (.com)!

 

 

"Happiness is the consequence of personal effort...
And once you have achieved a state of happiness,
you must never become lax about maintaining it.

You must make a mighty effort to keep swimming upward
into that happiness forever, to stay afloat on top of it."

Elizabeth Gilbert

 

You want to be happier, don't you? We all do! I'm a firm believer that happiness comes from within. It's a choice that you have to make every moment of your life. That being said, it doesn't hurt to have some external help. I love to read and learn about happiness and find ways to bring more happiness into my life and not too long ago, I discovered the website happier.com. What is happier.com? Well, for anyone interested in proactively working on their personal happiness, it's everything you could ever need and more! Read this summary of the site:

happier.com is a new website launching on today designed to help people not just be happier but “do happier.” This innovative website provides online tools and exercises for users to make an immediate positive impact on their lives. The website allows users to participate for free by taking 4 validated tests with instant feedback on strengths, optimism, happiness and positivity. More than 100 exclusive videos from the world's leading happiness researchers and practitioners are also included in this section of the site. Premium users can subscribe for just $5 a month for access to more than a dozen research-backed tools customized to increase happiness, resilience, optimism, engagement, and meaning.

 

This site is legit. Why? Because happier.com was created by Doug Hensch and Andrew Rosenthal to inspire happiness in others, and the foundation of the site is positive psychology. To develop the site, Hensch and Rosenthal had the privilege of working with Dr. Martin Seligman -- also known as the "father of positive psychology." When I first started reading up on positive psychology (and I'm still learning more about it every day), I quickly found out that Seligman was the go-to guy and the fact that he's assisted with this site is a pretty sure sign that you'll find just what you need to help create a happier you.

Now, I know what you're probably thinking: "Can't I do all of this stuff on my own? Can't I just do research and create documents and read books?" Sure, of course you can... but will you? If you're like me, it helps to have a place to organize everything and, if your happiness is something that's really important to you (I know it is to me!), this is well worth the few bucks you have to shell out to keep it all together. And you get access to all of this great stuff that you won't find anywhere else. How do I know all about it even though it's just officially launched? I had the wonderful privilege of trying it out for awhile before it was officially released and I can't say enough good things about it. Access to experts, tools, videos, and whole community of people who, like you, are interested in learning more about happiness. What could be better than that?

And if you can't afford to sign up for happier.com, at the very least you can read the happier.com blog, which I subscribe to and have already learned so much from. Every time I read it, I'm inspired to think about happiness in new ways. For example, right now there is a post up called "So You're Already Pretty Happy? Three Exercises That Will Work For You" that I found super interesting because who really spends that much time thinking about people who already consider themselves happy? That's the beauty of happier.com -- it covers everything you might ever want to know about happiness and it helps you in so many ways to improve upon your own happiness.

I was fortunate enough to be able to interview one of the co-founders of happier.com, Andrew Rosenthal, to learn more about how the site came to be and also to learn more about Rosenthal's background and how he got involved in this line of work. I want to give a big shout out to Andrew for taking the time to participate in the interview AND for creating the awesomeness that is happier.com!

 

What caused you to become interested in positive psychology? 

I’ve always been interested in determining what makes people happier. In college, I studied and wrote about the bioethics of human enhancement.  I signed up for a class with Dr. Martin Seligman, who is a noted professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and I started to learn more about positive psychology. Once I found out that there was a quantitative side to the study of happiness, I was hooked.    

  

What is the most important difference between positive psychology and psychology? 

To me, one of the most interesting aspects of positive psychology is its willingness to “play well” with other disciplines and fields. Look at the cutting-edge of positive psychology and you’ll find close partnerships between psychologists and educators, economics, physicians, business leaders, and others. This ability to closely, productively, work with other fields is an important aspect of positive psychology and I believe it’s one of the reasons that so many interesting people are attracted to the study of happiness.    

  

What inspired you to begin happier.com? 

I’ve spent hours listening to the best positive psychologists give speeches and explain their research. And I’ve read countless studies and books about the science of happiness.  It seemed to me that much of the best work is trapped in these formats. While speeches and books and grant applications and papers are good ways to record progress, they are not tools optimized for dissemination. happier.com is a way of getting the best happiness-boosting tools out to people who can really use them, immediately, and in the comfort of their own homes or offices.

 

What does the term "positive thinking" mean to you?   

 

To me, “positive thinking” is about employing the tools of positive psychology in everyday life, work, and relationships. Knowing your strengths and thinking about how to put them into use is positive thinking. Focusing on actively and constructively discussing a positive event, and learning how to be resilient in the face of bad news, is positive thinking.  And savoring ice cream instead of wolfing it down is positive thinking.  


What are your favorite features on happier.com? 

What I like most about happier.com is the freedom, coupled with the expert guidance.  All of the tests are available as soon as you register (for free) and all of the tools are available to premium subscribers. For those of us who know a bit about positive psychology — or just want to explore — being able to pick and choose tools and tests is great.  And for people who are looking for some guidance and who want to focus in on what will work best for them, the happiness plans are fantastic. All you do is pick a goal, like letting go of a grudge or working on your strengths, and you’ll immediately get guidance on where to start and what to do each day. 

 

If you couldn't tell from reading this post, I think happier.com is a pretty awesome (and useful!) site. For me, happiness is a lot of hard work. It's something I'm thinking about and working towards constantly. Though I know that happiness is within me and it's up to me to create it, it helps to have tools like the ones offered on this site to help motivate me to focus on my personal happiness. In addition, the site has helped me to pinpoint areas of my life that I want to focus on, something that I've been trying to figure out for as long as I can remember. Happiness requires work and, if you're going to work on it, you might as well have the right tools. Check out happier.com and see how you might be able to benefit from all of the great information and resources the site has to offer!

Comments

[Melanee]

Your blog is gorgeousness shining through multiple layers. Thank-you so much for your generous efforts in bringing such inspiring, thoughtful, well-researched posts and illuminating photography. I look forward to spending more time educating myself into a space of deeper happiness. May the light and goodness you radiate outward come back to you in overflowing abundance.

[Hayden Tompkins]

Oh, quizzes, how do I love thee. Let me count the ways! Thanks for sharing this, Dani.

[Lance]

Hi Dani,
Happiness rules! And the more we can add to our own happiness, and to those around us - the better our world is!

[positively present]

Melanee - Thank you so much! :) I'm so glad you enjoy the site and the information I write about here. Happiness is very important to me and I'm happy to know that I have the opportunity to share my thoughts about living positively in the present moment with others. Thanks for your kind comment!

Hayden - Me too! Quizzes are the BEST... especially quizzes that actually teach you something about yourself, which the ones on happier.com definitely do.

Lance - Yes it does! I agree that the more we can add to our happiness, the better. Of course, I believe happiness is a choice that comes from within, but it doesn't hurt to have useful tips and tools to help us expand upon our internal happiness!

[Daphne]

Dani, thank you for sharing this! I'm going to check it out right now. We can all use more happiness, and I agree, having tools to help us find it within ourselves is wonderful. I love your blog.

[Srinivas Rao]

Dani,

Thanks for sharing this interview and providing us with another great resource on the subject of happiness.

[Keith]

Hello Dani,

Wonderful article and an interesting site this happier.com. I went for a quick look so I'll go back and look at it in more depth soon.

I totally agree with you that happiness is a choice and therefor comes from within. What we allow or direct our mind to dwell on is what will affect our attitude/happiness.

Awesome job on this article Dani!

[Dayne]

Dani, this site looks great, thank you so much for sharing. Lastly, I wanted to say I LOVE that quote by Elizabeth Gilbert! Her book is so amazing, can't wait to see the movie version of it!

Cheers,

Dayne
http://www.TheHappySelf.com

[positively present]

Daphne - You're welcome. I'm glad I got a chance to tell readers of PP about it because I'm sure a lot of you will find it interesting. FYI, when I read the last sentence of your comment, I teared up for some reason. Something about those four words really gets to me so thank you for writing them!

Srinivas - You are welcome! I was happy (haha) to do it and I hope that anyone who visits the site will benefit from it the way that I have.

Keith - Thanks! There's so much to look at over there. It's a wonderful happiness resource. Happiness is definitely a choice and these tools can really help us in making the most of our happiness journeys.

Dayne - It's definitely an awesome site. So much great info, so many great tools. That quote is by far one of my favorites because it's such a great reminder that happiness isn't about exernal things that are easily obtained. Happiness is hard work and it is something we must constantly work at. I had no idea it was going to be a movie so thanks for the head's up on that!

[Dayne]

Yes Dani, guess who is suppose to play Elizabeth? Julia Roberts. :)

http://sify.com/movies/fullstory.php?id=14911720

Enjoy!

[positively present]

Dayne - WOW. I cannot imagine writing a book and then having Julia play me. That's crazy! Way to go, Gilbert! :) Thanks for passing the link along.

[All Women Stalker]

Amazing, thanks for sharing. Will definitely be checking that out.

-meream

[positively present]

Meream - No problem! Definitely check it out. It's worth a click. :)

[Sami - Life, Laughs & Lemmings]

Thanks PP! You know me, I'm always on the look out for ways to have more fun and up the happiness factor so I'll definitely check it out!

[Melissa Donovan]

Happier.com sounds wonderful! I think everyone could use a little more happiness, and we should all try to spread positive energy around. Thanks for sharing!

[Kaushik]

Hi Dani,

The site looks like a great resource, thanks! And you interview is wonderful; you get right to the point. Thank you for sharing!
k

[Megan "JoyGirl!" Bord]

I read one of Seligman's books a few years ago and it was pretty good, so I'm sure the site will also be a hit. I wouldn't have known about it had it not been for you, so thanks!

[positively present]

Sami - You're welcome! It's a great site and I think you'll really enjoy it.

Melissa - It's a great site and it's filled with great ideas on how to spread happiness. Hope you enjoy it!

Kaushik - The site's definitely awesome and thanks for your comment about the interview. I'm glad you liked my direct approach!

Megan - I haven't read any of his books yet, but I need to. Any quote I've read from him has been great. He's very well-known in the field so I'm sure he'll contribute a lot to the site.

Nazim - It's definitely cool. Have fun checking it out!

[Barbara Swafford]

Hi Dani,

Thank you for giving us the heads up on happier.com. I checked it out and it looks like a fabulous resource.

[Stephen - Rat Race Trap]

Hi Dani! I've been getting the blog posts from happier.com for some time and it looks great. Have you read the book "Positivity" by Barbara Fredrickson? I've got many books on positive psychology, but that one was a little different. I thought it was outstanding.

[positively present]

Barbara - You're welcome! I'm glad you got a chance to check it out and see what a great happiness resource it is. :)

Stephen - I haven't read that book but you're not the first to mention it to me (it's kinda up my alley I guess...haha). I absolutely need to check it out. I'm going to go home tonight and see if I can download it on my Kindle! Thanks for reminding me of it.

[janice]

Thanks for pointing out this new project, Dani. I look forward to checking it out. Well done on being chosen for the trial run and on your the interview!

[positively present]

Janice - Hope you enjoy what you find over there on happier.com. It's a great site! And thanks for your compliments. I'm really glad Andrew agreed to do the interview. It turned out well and I'm pretty sure readers enjoyed it. :)

[Patricia]

Oh I am so happy my computer is working today....I thought I was working on laughing more in my life, but after reading this I think laughter would just be a result of living my life out of neutral all the time.

Thank you for this discovery and post. And thank you computer for making this possible :)

I also found an app for my phone called, DoGood it is free from the U of Michigan and it gives a little suggestion that brings appreciation into living - yesterday I was to give 3 hugs...I did and they were appreciated.

[Jannie Funster]

I POSITIVELY loved it over there. Thank you. What a wonderful new find.

It is nice to have a guiding hand even tho we know deep down we CAN do these things ourselves. A little encouragement and support goes long long way.

[Giovanna Garcia]

Hi Dani,
Thank you for sharing this wonderful website, I love the idea. :-) Yay, to more happiness in the world. Thanks to good people like you and Andrew, keep spreading the happiness.
Great interview.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action

[positively present]

Patricia - Yay for your computer working! I'm glad you were able to have a chance to read the post. DoGood sounds like a great app. I need to get an iPhone first though! :)

Jannie - Awesome! ;) It's a really great site, isn't it? There are tons of great resources to help us as we work towards our personal happiness. It never hurts to have a little help!

Giovanna - You're welcome. It's definitely a great idea and I'm thankful that the guys that started it are bringing more tools to encourage happiness into the world. Happiness takes a lot of work and, as you say, imperfect action is better than no action! Even if people don't use all of the tools on the site, it's a really great resource and is useful for everyone.

[Patrice]

Thanks for sharing and I'll definitely check out happier.com. Happiness rules...

[positively present]

Patrice - Happiness DOES rule! :) Glad to share this site with you and I hope you enjoy your visit to happier.com. :)

[Hilary]

Hi Dani .. Thanks for that interview and feedback - it's great to know this is one of your sources .. and that there's a blog to go with it -

Good to know - Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters Inspirational Stories

[positively present]

Hilary - You're welcome! It's a great source and I hope you have a chance to check it out.

[Andrew]

I just wanted to express my gratitude to Dani and to everyone who has commented about http://www.happier.com. My colleagues and I have been working on it for almost a year and it's so great to hear the positive feedback and the fact that it's something you've been looking for. I really look forward to hearing more of your feedback and hopefully seeing you as part of the happier.com community. You can always email me directly at andrew.rosenthal@happier.com.

Best,

-Andrew
Part of the team at http://www.happier.com

[positively present]

Andrew - You're welcome! And thank you for creating the great site and for agreeing to be interviewed here on Positively Present. happier.com is great and I'm sure my readers will get a lot out of it! :)