Tag Archives: happiness

Reality Check: Random Acts at Home

Random acts of kindness for strangers have been popular for years now. When we do something kind, the likely result is that we feel good and satisfied. We get to perceive ourselves as being a kind and caring person, and … Continue reading

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Reality Check: Aged and Happy

If we are fortunate, we grow old. If we are happy and satisfied as we grow old, we are very fortunate indeed. What contributes to being happy as we grow older? In recent columns, I’ve concentrated on practices suggested by … Continue reading

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Reality Check:The Happiness of Turning Toward

Have I told you lately that I love you? In any series of articles that’s looking to help increase our happiness, you knew that sooner or later, love would have to show up! It’s well-established that an important factor in … Continue reading

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Reality Check: Your Happiness and Other People’s Stuff

An application of choice theory called WDEP starts with, “What do you want?” Different people want different things. Taking the time to first identify what you want helps you choose what actions to take to get it. “What you want” … Continue reading

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Reality Check: All Work and All Play

Think back to when you’ve had a really satisfying day. Perhaps it was yesterday! Or maybe you have to search your memory and go back years. No matter. Just think of a good, satisfying day that you’ve actually experienced—not one … Continue reading

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Reality Check: Practice Makes Better

We get good at what we practice. Even if we never completely master a skill, the more we practice, the more we improve. Conversely, if we don’t practice, we won’t improve and may even lose what skill we had. In … Continue reading

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Reality Check: To Rely and to Be Reliable

There’s a particular satisfaction for me when someone I know has made progress in their life. It’s especially gratifying if I can perceive that I had contributed to that progress, even in a tiny way. Often, the achievements are relatively … Continue reading

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Reality Check: Optimism or Entitlement?

Which do you think leads to a happier, more satisfied life: Expecting that life will be easy and becoming disappointed when you learn that it’s difficult? Or expecting life to be hard and being pleasantly surprised when some things work … Continue reading

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Reality Check: Do you want to keep the hurt alive?

Have you ever been hurt? Probably so. I think that it’s the rare person who makes it through life without feeling that someone has done them wrong at some point. This series of columns is intended to provide suggestions to … Continue reading

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Reality Check: Proactive Happiness

In this series of columns on happiness, my goal is to help answer the question, “What can we do to be happier?” One excellent resource is “Mastering Happiness,” where Dr. Joel Wade discusses ten specific practices. If you adopt them, … Continue reading

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