Hardwiring Happiness: The Practical Science Of Reshaping Your Brain--and Your Life (2013) - Plot & Excerpts
The format:AudiobookThe Story:This is a non-fiction work that looks at brain science and how we can work our brains to focus on positive and become happier. Hanson's point is that our brains have evolved to focus on the negative -- because if there is a tiger stalking you, you better notice it -- but that evolution is not serving us anymore. So he lays out how we can rewire our brains to hold on to the positive instead. The Review:This was really interesting and very simple. As Hanson works through the ideas, he has specific practices that he lets you stop and work through. The audiobook format was not the best way to read this book. I "read" it as I was driving for Thanksgiving, but with the start of each practice, Hanson says, "Don't do this while you are driving." He also has wrap up points at the end of each chapter, which in an audiobook makes it sound really repetitive. Despite the couple of drawbacks to the audio form, I recommend the book. I'd suggest a hardcopy though. In "Hardwiring Happiness," Rick Hanson, Ph.D. provides an easy and actionable "recipe" for giving positive experiences greater weight to enable an ongoing sense of peace and contentment. I'd learned of Dr. Hanson's books based on my interest in meditation and his articles about the benefits of using meditation in his psychology practice. I chose to listen to this book when I realized I'd become so focused on worries about loved ones' health issues that I wasn't appreciating happy events as much as I would normally. Dr. Hanson's approach focuses on identifying (or creating) positive experiences and then extending and reinforcing the good feelings those experiences evoke. Wait, isn't this just taking the time to smell the roses? Absolutely, but it's all too easy to overlook stopping to savor positive experiences when one is feeling especially busy or preoccupied with day to day concerns... and not taking the time to savor positive experiences actually reduces one's ability to cope with stresses as they arise. I listened to the audio version in order to benefit from the guided meditations included within, and also picked up the kindle ebook as a handy reference. The author narrated the audio version and I found listening to his observations helpful in reinforcing the concepts he shared. I recommend "Hardwiring Happiness" to anyone who feels they aren't appreciating life's gifts as much as they'd like, and wants to take effective steps to more fully savor the good.
What do You think about Hardwiring Happiness: The Practical Science Of Reshaping Your Brain--and Your Life (2013)?
Found it a bit cliche for my taste, might be good for most, I'm a crazy asshole.
—racqstar
I just couldn't get interested in this book. It's pretty repetitive...
—joannalaceyfaith
Good technique but same thing is repeated in the entire book.
—armoesa
