Sunday, July 30, 2017

The Science of Happiness & Well-Being

Positive Psychology Primer

Happiness and Well-Being

Lesson 1






What is happiness?

Happiness is the experience of joy, contentment, or positive well-being, combined with a sense that one’s life is good, meaningful, and worthwhile.



Five Elements of Well-Being

Positive Emotions
Engagement
Relationships
Meaning
Accomplishment



Each of these five elements will be discussed in our next lesson.


The Five Elements of Well-Being

Lesson 2



Happiness is a thing and well-being is a construct. The five elements of well-being are positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment.



Positive Emotion: 
Positive Emotion includes the feelings of joy, excitement, contentment, hope and warmth. There may be positive emotions relating to the past, present or future.

Engagement: 
Engagement denotes deep involvement in a task or activity. One does not experience the passing of time. One experiences flow in sports, music and singing but one may also experience it in work, reading a book or in a good conversation.



Relationships: 
We feel happy when we are among family and friends. The quality and depth of relationships in one’s life make it rich.



Meaning: 
It’s connecting to something larger than life.



Accomplishment: 
One strives for achievements in life as a source of happiness.

Each of these elements contributes to well-being. The good news is that each one of the above may be cultivated and developed to enhance level of well-being.



The Happiness Formula

Lesson 3



In this lesson, let us consider the happiness equation:

H = S + C + V


where H represents the enduring level of happiness, S is the set range, C is the circumstances of life and V represents the variables under our voluntary control.


ENDURING LEVEL OF HAPPINESS: H

The enduring level of happiness is different from momentary happiness. Momentary level of happiness may change with small burst of positive feelings.


SET RANGE: S

Almost 50% of our inherent happiness level is genetic. This means that we can only be as happy as our parents or grandparents. That is the set range of happiness.

Furthermore, there are two barriers to becoming happier:

The Happiness Thermostat:
Whether good fortune comes our way or misfortune strikes, the built-in happiness thermostat reverts us to our personal set range.

The Hedonic Treadmill:
This causes you to adapt to good things rapidly. As you accumulate material possessions and accomplishments, your expectations rise.


CIRCUMSTANCES: C

It’s possible, but sometimes impractical, to bring about increase in happiness level by changing life circumstances. Only 10% of our happiness depends on the circumstances of life. 

Let us consider how some circumstances impact happiness:

Money:
Wealth is necessary for life satisfaction but, beyond a certain level, added wealth brings no further life satisfaction. People who value money more than other goals are less satisfied with their life.

Marriage:
Married people are happier than unmarried people.

Health:
Objective health is barely related to happiness; what matters is our subjective perception of how healthy we are. Moderate ill health does not lead to unhappiness but severe illness does.

Education, Climate, Race, and Gender:
None of them much matters for happiness.

Religion:
Religious people are somewhat more happier and more satisfied with life than nonreligious people.

Place of stay:
To be happier, live in a wealthy democracy, not in an impoverished dictatorship.


FACTORS UNDER VOLUNTARY CONTROL: V

The good news is that 40% of happiness depends on factors under our voluntary control. If you decide to change them, and make the required efforts in the direction, your level of happiness is likely to increase lastingly.

Positive emotion - satisfaction about the past, optimism about the future and happiness in the present - may be enhanced with real effort. We will learn about happiness activities to reach upper levels of happiness in a subsequent chapter.




Flow

Lesson 4



One thing I can say for sure – flow brings real happiness!

Flow is a state of joy, creativity and total involvement, in which problems seem to disappear and there is an exhilarating feeling of transcendence.

According to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, flow is what we feel when we are fully alive, involved with what we do, and in harmony with the environment around us. It is something that happens most easily when we sing, dance, do sports – but it can happen when we work, read a good book, or have a good conversation.



Engagement, or flow, is one of the strongest pillars around which Positive Psychology is built. Here, one is fully in the present, immersed in something worthwhile. For an auto-telic person, the experience becomes its own reward.






We each have the potential to experience flow, whether at work, at play or in our relationships.



Happiness Activities​

Lesson 5



As we know by now, 50% of happiness is in our genes, 10% depends on the circumstances of life and the rest 40% can be cultivated by us by taking up activities, intentionally and voluntarily, that bring joy and happiness.



These intentional activities we call Happiness Activities.



You can find activities that fit your interests, your values and your needs.

Let us classify and list a few activities to make it clear:

Everyone needs to spare time regularly for at least one activity to take care of the body, mind and soul. It may be aerobics, yoga, meditation, walking, or any of the physical exercises.



Stress is the major concern in modern life. One needs to learn how to cope with stress, trauma, and hardships of life.

Finding flow and living in the present is the surest path to authentic happiness. You can choose a happiness activity that helps you enhance flow experience.

You can enrich your life by developing positive relationships and by broadening social connections.



Committing to your goals and a committed goal pursuit leads to accomplishments, thus enhancing your happiness quotient.

You may want to enhance your positive emotions about the past by practicing gratitude or your positive emotions about the future by practicing optimism.

We will be taking up some proven happiness activities from each of these sections in our subsequent lessons.

(I will be away for about a month. So, the next lesson may appear after some gap. Be happy!)

Jagat Singh Bisht
Master Teacher
Happiness & Well-Being
+91 7389938255





Saturday, July 1, 2017

BAHIRANGA - A HEALTHY-HAPPY WEEKEND

STRETCH! LAUGH! REJUVENATE!


Ever wondered if only a weekend is enough to silence the stress and noises in the mind? 

With Bahiranga Weekend Experience, it is actually true... ‘Bahiranga’ is a weekend programme for health, happiness and fun. 

It’s best arranged in a resort, away from the hustle and bustle of daily routine. 

Get in touch with LifeSkills to plan a healthy-happy weekend. 

Email:lifeskills.happiness@gmail.com; Phone: +91 7389938255.

Jagat Singh Bisht
Founder: LifeSkills

ANTARANGA - BEGIN WEEKDAYS IN PEACE





‘Antaranga’ is a programme for all those who are very busy and successful in life. 

An hour of meditation in the morning gives you the calm and strength to face the stress and challenges that spring-up during the course of the day. 

LifeSkillsprovide you a different meditative experience on each day of the week. 

Get in touch with us. 


Call: +91 7389938255

or 

Email: lifeskills.happiness@gmail.com

Jagat Singh Bisht
Founder: LifeSkills

Friday, June 30, 2017

Laughter Yoga: Learning Session For Beginners





This is a simple learning video, easy to understand.. shot casually.. no pretensions about it.. nevertheless i am happy to share that thousands of beginners have learned the basics of laughter yoga by watching this video.. some laughter yoga leaders have told me that they watched it again and again to get their basics right.. a lady traveled all the way from frankfurt to indore as she considered me to be a good teacher after watching it.. this video has now been watched 31,542 times.. i am grateful to all my viewers and also the probationary/ trainee officers at state bank foundation institute, chetana, indore who came up with the idea and shot this video..



Jagat Singh Bisht

Laughter Yoga Master Trainer



coolbisht@hotmail.com

Saturday, June 24, 2017

Retreat in Rishikesh (India)

East Meets West
October 1 - 7, 2017


Yoga means to join or unite with a higher power or spiritual force. Join us at Rishikesh for a Comprehensive Retreat on Yoga, Meditation, Laughter Yoga, Spirituality & The Science of Happiness. Be there! 

To get in touch, you can call us on: 7389938255 or write to us at lifeskills.happiness@gmail.com.

Jagat Singh Bisht
Founder: LifeSkills


Yoga Nidra By Swami Satyananda Saraswati




Yoga Nidra is a systematic method of inducing complete physical, mental and emotional relaxation.


The term yoga nidra
is derived from two Sanskrit words, yoga
meaning union or one-pointed awareness, and nidra
which means sleep.

Yoga nidra is a more efficient and effective form of
psychic and physiological rest and rejuvenation than conventional sleep.

A single hour of yoga nidra is as restful as four hours
of ordinary sleep.

Yoga nidra is a technique which can be used to awaken
divine faculties, and is one of the ways of entering samadhi



The practice was created by Swami Satyananda Saraswati who established the Bihar School of Yoga. 


There is a touch of divinity in this rendering of yoga nidra by Swami Satyananda Saraswati.



I have been listening to it again and again.



Jagat Singh Bisht

Founder: LifeSkills



coolbisht@hotmail.com

Saturday, June 17, 2017

Sunday, June 11, 2017

3 COMPELLING REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD GO FOR THIS RETREAT

TRANSFORM THE WAY YOU EXPERIENCE LIFE


We are organizing this unique retreat in Rishikesh, India from October 1 – 7, 2017 that has the potential to totally transform the way you experience life:




Here are three good reasons why you should go for this retreat:

1.    RICH CONTENTS:
    You will not find a program anywhere that offers you Yoga, Meditation, Laughter Yoga, Positive Psychology and Spirituality in one package along special offerings of Surya Namaskara, Yoga Nidra, Anapana Meditation, Sufi Meditation and Happiness Activities.

2.    DREAM LOCATION:
     Rishikesh is known as the World Capital of Yoga and Meditation. You would have wasted your life if you did not experience a retreat here. Our program will be conducted in the most picturesque location on the bank of Ganga in the Himalayas. If you have time you have the facilities for Ayurveda therapy and massage, river rafting, bungee jumping, trekking, Ganga aarti etc.

3.    NOMINAL EXPENDITURE:
     We have kept the fee nominal - very nominal – for you. The accommodation is good and you have to pay a very nominal amount for it. The food is simple and comes at a very nominal cost. No advance payments. You make all payments once you arrive.

You would have made one of your wisest decisions for having an optimal experience of life by choosing this program.

Just send us an email and we will help you register for the retreat: lifeskills.happiness@gmail.com

Jagat Singh Bisht
Founder: LifeSkills