LIVE HAPPY: 3 Secrets to Happiness this Holiday
3 Secrets to Happiness this Holiday Live Happy Magazine, Shawn Achor & Michelle Gielan November 2015 Expectations and stress seem to increase over the holidays, especially in the weeks leading up to them. We need to make the perfect meals, wear the perfect clothes and, of course, get the perfect gifts. But while it is easy to […]
SUCCESS: Why You Need to Stop Worrying About Failing
Why You Need to Stop Worrying About Failing Success Magazine, Shawn Achor October 2015 Do you know what “icing the kicker” means? In football, when a kicker is preparing to make a potential game-winning field goal, the opposing coach will often call a timeout right before the ball is snapped. The thinking behind this strategy […]
SUCCESS MAGAZINE: The Science of a Smile
The Science of a Smile Success Magazine, Shawn Achor November 2015 When people complain, their facial expressions become scrunched and anxious. When we feel threatened by a negative family member or co-worker, our faces usually reflect exactly what we are trying to reject. Want people around you to be more positive? Check your face first. Emotions […]
HBR: Consuming Negative News Can Make You Less Effective at Work
Consuming Negative News Can Make You Less Effective at Work Harvard Business Review, Shawn Achor & Michelle Gielan September 2015 We’ve known for some time now that hearing negative news broadcasts can have an immediate effect on your stress level, but new research we just conducted in partnership with Arianna Huffington shows how significant these negative […]
HBR: Make Yourself Immune to Secondhand Stress
Make Yourself Immune to Secondhand Stress Harvard Business Review, Shawn Achor & Michelle Gielan September 2015 Over the past decade, we have learned how our brains are hardwired for emotional contagion. Emotions spread via a wireless network of mirror neurons, which are tiny parts of the brain that allow us to empathize with others and […]
HBR: Are the People Who Take Vacations the Ones Who Get Promoted?
Are the People Who Take Vacations the Ones Who Get Promoted? Harvard Business Review, Shawn Achor June 2015 Too many people limit their happiness and success by assuming that taking time off from work will send a negative message to their manager and slow their career advancement. But new research, says that the exact opposite […]
SUCCESS: How to Replace Your Bad Habits with Good Ones
SUCCESS Magazine, Shawn Achor April 2015 We often think that if we had more choices, it would be easier to change our lives. In fact, we dohave plenty of choices, but we don’t change. What we really need in our lives to make a positive change are fewer choices. In The Happiness Advantage, I wrote […]
SUCCESS: Is the Glass Half-Empty or Half-Full?
SUCCESS Magazine, Shawn Achor January 2015 If you saw me on Super Soul Sunday with Oprah Winfrey, you’ll know that Oprah and I discussed the age-old question: Is the glass half-empty or half-full? Even the positive-minded media mogul admitted to wrestling with the question. “I beat myself up because sometimes I look at it and I […]
SUCCESS: The Best Antidote to Worry
SUCCESS Magazine, Shawn Achor December 2014 Negative noise is everywhere in our society, but it’s also inside our heads. Worry is the loudest internal noise, and as a new parent, I understand how easy it is to let it creep in. I need to remember that worry is not love, and that in fact giving […]
Live Happy: Give Happy
Live Happy, Shawn Achor & Michelle Gielan December 2014 Tips for smart, meaningful giving and receiving this holiday season. Before you go racing out to the mall to pick up a new oversized reindeer sweater for Aunt Sally and a set of drums for your 4-year-old nephew (fun for him, not so much for your […]