This week we are contemplating Tony Hsieh’s formula for happiness:

His formula for happiness has 4 elements:- perceived control; perceived progress; connectedness (ie. the number and depth of you rrelationships); vision/meaning (meaning being part of something that is bigger than yourself).

In light of COVID it got me thinking…. we don’t really have a lot of ‘control’ over most things in life. Right? So… what does this mean in the context of happiness? Is there a ‘loop-hole’ in the system that we can all tap into to find happiness in our lives.

One person I have taken inspiration from is Psychologist and researcher, Carol Dweck who has primarily focused her research on how children overcome adversity. She spends time discussing the difference between “growth mindset” and “fixed mindset” and how these are key to a child’s ability to progress and to excel.

Check out her TED talk “The power of believing you can improve” HERE.

The key to her excellence it turns out is about focusing on “process” and “progress” rather than “outcome”.

In the context of happiness it got me thinking that maybe the outcome isn’t actually that relevant to happiness after all. Maybe it is the process and the progress that you make in your processes that is really the key to success and happiness in life.

Further to the above… I have been reading a book this week called “The Mastery of Self” by Don Miguel Ruiz Jr. It’s a little out there…despite this one great takeaway for me was his suggestion of ‘re-framing’ your narrative. So going back over your life and re-telling your story again and again until it makes you feel good about who you are. Recognising that you can’t change the facts, however your perception is completely within your control. You can and are the hero or herione of your life so make sure you tell yourself a great story.