The How of Happiness
by Sonja Lyubomirsky
Lyubomirsky's research-based program: about forty percent of happiness is within your control through intentional activity, and she offers twelve evidence-backed activities, gratitude, kindness, savoring, forgiveness, with a diagnostic to match them to your personality. It is the most practical of the positive-psychology books.
Read it if…
you want a tested set of activities and a way to choose the ones that fit you.
Skip it if…
you want the theory; the book is deliberately applied.
Three things you will actually use
- Choose activities that fit; forced ones fail.
- Vary and time them to avoid adaptation.
- Commit for weeks, not days.
Do this first
Take the person-activity fit diagnostic and begin the top activity this week.
Our verdict
Practical and grounded; a program, not a pep talk.
Compare with other Gratitude books
Happier
Tal Ben-Shahar · Gratitude
Clear and gentle; a good first positive psychology book.
CLICK TO SEE
Hardwiring Happiness
Rick Hanson · Gratitude
Simple and kind; a small practice with real effects.
CLICK TO SEE
The Art of Happiness
Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler · Gratitude
Gentle and enduring; a wise companion.
CLICK TO SEEBrowse all Gratitude book reviews or get the free Reality Code Cheat Sheet.
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