A Crucial Character Trait for Happiness
Six takeaways:
- Enthusiasm for life (as 19th-century philosopher William James put it, “zest [for] the common objects of life.”) is one of the biggest and most often ignored drivers of individual happiness.
- We can take steps in our own lives to enhance/build our sense of enthusiasm. Overall, they involve a conscious decision to resist the urge to withdraw from the minutiae of life.
- One tactic to enhance your enthusiasm is to use the “As If Principle“: This is a “fake it till you make it” approach– research shows that intentionally faking enthusiasm for things can actually result in increased enthusiasm for them.
- One can also reframe challenges as chances. This is a common strategy in creativity and innovation, and a successful technique in business leadership. When presented with a challenge or problem, look at it as a chance to improve, learn, or build.
- It is also important to Curate Your Friends. If you notice a tendency to withdraw, try to hang out with people you find infectiously enthusiastic- the active, the extroverted. Their habits can rub off on you!
- Overall, some level of withdrawal can be healthy; it is also not sustainable to force enthusiasm on oneself- but being intentional about elevating enthusiasm’s role in your life can lead to a healthier, happier existence.
From Arthur C Brooks at The Atlantic:
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