1) Success Brings Happiness? No. Happiness Brings Success.

We all chase success hoping it will make us happy:

1. I’ll be happy once I get that promotion.
2. I’ll be happy once I get that raise.
3. I’ll be happy once I lose 15 pounds.

But the research shows that isn’t true. You achieve a goal and you’re briefly happier… but then you’re looking toward the next big thing.

What Shawn’s research showed was when you flip the formula and focus on increasing happiness, you end up increasing success.

Here’s Shawn:

If we can get somebody to raise their levels of optimism or deepen their social connection or raise happiness, turns out every single business and educational outcome we know how to test for improves dramatically. You can increase your success rates for the rest of your life and your happiness levels will flatline, but if you raise your level of happiness and deepen optimism it turns out every single one of your success rates rises dramatically compared to what it would have been at negative, neutral, or stressed.

I hope so. I'm trying to create a positive life and work environment, and trusting that success will follow.

If at first you don't succeed, redefine success. 

Eric Barker calls this the funniest TED talk ever.

It caught the attention of Oprah.

that is a great tedtalk.  so funny and informative.  his message is wonderful and his delivery is perfect: he doesn't mess up a single word!

I wonder how much he rehearsed to make it so good.

he's given it a lot, i think, at the schools and companies he mentions.  he is hilarious, though.  he really had me laughing when he starts talking about his graph and data at 3:00.

Yes, I love that part. I gotta search the web and see if he's done anything else.