“Psychology and the Good Life” Notes/Insight

Summary

In this video, Laurie Santos talked about her class “Psychology and the Good Life”. Laurie Santos is a professor at Yale and she thought that instead of only teaching how human minds work, she needed to teach students how to implement the new knowledge to make their lives happier. So she made the class, “Psychology and the Good Life”, and in her talk she summed up the class with ten insights.

Instight #1: Material and temporary joy does not affect one’s happiness in the long-term

When people want to get happier, they believe that they must get rid of the bad things in their life or get more money from their jobs. Though this does slightly affect one’s well-being, it only affects at most 10% of it. Found in a study by Sonja Lyubomirsky, behaviors and willingness to change is what takes the most effect on one’s well-being.

Instight #2: We can change our well-being

There is a common misconception that we are stuck in the current well-being we are in, but that is false. We are able to improve our happiness ourselves. From a study by Sonja Lyubomirsky, a psychologist, found that about 50% of our well-being is affected by our genes. This means that the other 50% can be affected by our own doing.

Instight #3: Bringing your self is the hardest part of changing your well-being

Taking control of your flow of life is the hardest part of becoming happy. Just learning about psychology won’t help you become happy, you must put it into practice. For example to become fit, one must workout regularly and consistently to observe results. Same with your well-being, one must make a change that is consistently affecting your life for the better.

Instight #:4 Realize that your intuition is lying to yourself about how to become happy

Your mind is not telling you what you need to become happy. To become happy, one must realize that their mind is not telling the truth. Your mind tells you that you need more material possessions to be happy, but this is false because one you get those items, you just want more.

Instight #5: Social connections are key for happiness

Nick Eppley and his colleagues at Chicago Business School conducted a study asking people on the subway to stay in a solitary state, a state where one must talk to another the whole ride, or do what ever they want. According to the study, the people who made social connections felt happier than before and those who were solitary felt worse.

Insight #6: Be present in the moment

Taking time to realize what you are doing and focusing is important for your well-being. People tend to just go through the motions and rush through the day trying to get everything done, but taking a moment to really comprehend what is going on in your day can bump up your well-being.

Insight #7: Make time to be gratuitous everyday

Taking time to be thankful about something everyday can improve one’s happiness. Just writing a small note about what you are grateful for can bump up your happiness and well-being. It keeps your mind on positivity instead of negativity and it is good for your well-being.

Gratitude Note

Note to my good friend, Martin Nguyen:

  • Marty, you are such a beast. Even though we just met at the beginning of last school year, I am so glad that we are this good of friends now. I love everytime we go to 4s and ball on kids, and am looking forward to many more appearences by the dynamic duo, Marty and Lave. I know you are going to do big things, and can’t wait to finish high school together.

Martins Response

  • Liav you are such a bear. Your one of the toughest people I know and you always find another way of doing things even when life knocks you down. I greatly appreciate you for the note and I am thankful for our friendship for the past year. Can’t wait to finish high school.

List of Gratitude

  • My Parents
  • All my friends
  • My teamates
  • My Coach, Coach Cole
  • Living in this beautiful neighborhood and having the many oppurunities that I recieve
  • Life

Mental Health Goals

  • Have a happy mentality every day
  • Sleep at least 7.5 hours
  • Always eat healthy
  • Excersize as much as I can
  • Be a good person. :)