Harvard professor reveals the key to lasting happiness: It's 'pretty simple'
America is in a 'happiness slump,' Brooks revealed Wednesday
Harvard professor Arthur Brooks reveals the secrets to lasting happiness
'Build the Life You Want' author Arthur Brooks discusses the individual journey to achieving greater happiness on 'Making Money.'
The pursuit of happiness is one of the essential parts of the United States' distinctive foundation, but in wake of the worldwide mental health crisis, Harvard professor Arthur Brooks has shared his secret to achieving unwavering contentment.
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During an appearance on "Making Money with Charles Payne," Brooks explains why he "dedicated [his] life" to understanding the science of happiness, revealing that the solution to lasting results is "pretty simple."
Arthur Brooks says happiness is a "direction." (Photo by Allison Shelley/Getty Images) (Getty Images / Getty Images)
"This is the important thing to keep in mind. Everybody wants to be happy. But what we really can get is happier. Your happiness is not a destination, it's a direction. And the way that people can get happier is by understanding the basic science of what happiness is all about. And that's what this book is about," Brooks began, Wednesday.
"I've dedicated my life to studying the science of happiness. And Oprah and I, we teamed up to bring it to an audience of millions of people. And I'm delighted because people are reading this all over the place and telling us that they're actually getting happier on the basis of knowledge and action in their lives."
He stressed that one of the "biggest mistakes" someone can make in their pursuit of happiness is obsessing over it, because it could make us sadder.
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"When we feel like we must be ultimately blissful, and we're not, then that becomes a real source of frustration. But when we understand what it really is, which is not a feeling, this is very important. This is one of the biggest mistakes that my students make, is thinking that happiness is a nice feeling. It's not. Feelings are just evidence of happiness," Brooks explained.
"But we understand that it's a combination of enjoyment of your life, satisfaction with your accomplishments, and finding meaning in your life. Each one of these can be kind of a pursuit in and of itself. And that's not frustrating at all. That's an incredible adventure. It's changed my life to understand the science of how to do just that."
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As noted by Payne, the first section of the book, "Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier," details a conversation Brooks had with his mother-in-law, who said it was not until she aged that she was able to truly understand the "secret" to getting happier.
Group of friends gathering at dining table for Thanksgiving dinner. Focus is on man carving roast turkey. (iStock / iStock)
"You have to design your habits. You have to pursue the habits of the happiest people. And I'll tell you what they are, by the way, it's pretty simple stuff. The happiest people have kind of a happiness 401K plan. They have a happiness pension plan where they're investing every day in their faith, their family life, their friendships and serving other people with their work. Faith, family, friends and work. Those are the big four," Brooks concluded.
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"The people who are less happy are simply going in other directions or trying to satisfy themselves, looking at social media, wasting their time, no. Faith, family, friends and work. That's it."