Moment 153: Happiness Engineer Explains The Exact Formula For Happiness: Mo Gowdat

Everyone wants to be happy, but the modern world is rife with obstacles to happiness. Many people view happiness as an elusive goal that’s perpetually out of reach. However, Mo Gawdat argues that we can be consistently happy if we bring our expectations and perceptions of our lives into alignment.

In Solve for Happy, Gawdat outlines a simple algorithm to do so: First, dispel six misconceptions that cause us to suffer; next, remove seven weaknesses that make us unhappy; and finally, embrace five pillars to become permanently happy. By following this three-part algorithm, we can enjoy lasting happiness.

In this guide, we’ll examine Gawdat’s algorithm and address the misconceptions, weaknesses, and pillars that he discusses. We’ll examine concrete strategies for following this algorithm, and we’ll compare Gawdat’s work to other guides for happiness.

We take it as a given that we want to be happy, but how do we achieve happiness, or even define it? Derren Brown suggests that the answers can be found in the teachings of the ancient Greek philosophers for whom the quest for a happy, well-lived life was a practical problem to be solved. Brown says that by adopting a philosophy based on those of the Stoics and Epicureans, we can lead thoughtful, balanced, and more well-rounded lives.

As a magician, Brown isn’t a stereotypical self-help guru. However, his understanding of how stories misdirect us led to his belief that we can reshape our own narratives to be happy in the here and now while maintaining a positive outlook toward our own mortality. This guide will examine Brown’s definition of happiness and the philosophical building blocks he claims can achieve it. We’ll compare Brown’s ideas to those of modern psychology and contrast his views with those of other happiness experts, some of whom he argues directly against.

Have you ever wondered why you often regret your choices? In Stumbling on Happiness, award-winning Harvard professor Daniel Gilbert offers an explanation for what are, in his view, unavoidable poor decisions: You fabricate a large part of your reality—your memories of the past, perception of the present, and vision of the future. When you then use these inaccurate perceptions of the future, present, and past to make choices about what to do in the future, your choices are often poor and hinder future happiness.

In this guide, we’ll walk through Gilbert’s thesis, describing how your brain works and how its fabrication of reality leads you to make six specific types of bad decisions about your future. We’ll also link Gilbert’s ideas to other, related areas of human cognition. Finally, while Gilbert claims you can’t counteract your tendency to make poor decisions about your future, we’ll offer suggestions on how to improve your decision-making as much as possible.

Most people think that happiness comes after success, and that success comes after hard work. But we’ve had the equation all wrong: Happiness isn’t the result of success—it’s the cause of it. In The Happiness Advantage, author Shawn Achor introduces this formula for success, based on research in neuroscience and the relatively new field of positive psychology. Achor offers insight as a leading expert on the connection between happiness and performance and the founder of a research and consulting firm that optimizes people’s achievement through positive psychology.

This book explains the benefits of happiness—from increased creativity to improved health—and how a positive mindset can change your personal and professional life. In addition, Achor provides strategies for adopting a positive mindset, remaining optimistic in the face of adversity, and raising your happiness baseline.

Radical Acceptance is a meditative practice wherein we acknowledge what we’re experiencing—positive or negative—and welcome it. It’s a powerful tool that allows us to be fully present in each passing moment. It helps us avoid getting stuck in our own heads.

Tara Brach, a practicing psychologist and devout Buddhist, discusses how we can use Radical Acceptance to live our lives more fully by always bringing our full attention to the present moment and accepting it for what it is. You'll learn how we get trapped in the stories we tell ourselves, and how Radical Acceptance can bring us out of the trance.

Like many people, Mo Gawdat was trapped in a cycle of negative thoughts and emotions until, after the death of his beloved son, he devised a formula to escape. His background as a software engineer helped Gawdat realize that our brain functions like a computer—so, if we want it to produce happiness, all we need to do is program it with the right code. In That Little Voice In Your Head, Gawdat explains how to understand and program your brain so you can experience the world in ways that produce positive actions and emotions.

In this guide, we’ll start by explaining how your brain functions. Then, we’ll explore the faulty methods your brain uses to process information, causing unhappiness. Finally, we’ll discuss how to replace these methods with new ones that will ensure happiness. In our commentary, we’ll compare Gawdat’s ideas with those of other experts on happiness, psychology, and brain science.

When things feel out of your control, it’s easy to give up, believing that you can’t change your situation. However, the authors of The Oz Principle argue that, like Dorothy and her companions in The WIzard of Oz, you have more power to create change than you may realize; you don’t need a wizard or magical solution. The key is not getting stuck in a victim mindset.

The Oz Principle is: To reach your goals, take initiative and assume accountability for your circumstances and your future. The authors lay out four steps to accountability that will move you from a mindset of victimism to success in your personal life and in your organization. This guide compares the authors’ ideas for why and how to take charge of your life to those of other writers on psychology and business development.

Relentless defines a mental framework that author Tim Grover claims you’ll need to become the best in your field or discipline—a framework he calls relentlessness. This framework involves committing everything you have to overcoming obstacles and finding success.

In this guide, we’ll explain why a relentless mindset helps you succeed, as well as how you can apply this mindset to your own life. We’ll also provide commentary offering psychological research to contextualize Grover’s arguments, practical advice on applying his recommendations, and expansions on some of his arguments for clarity.