My Favorite Books - The Happiness Project

I think most of us want to be happy - I know I do.  It's a worthwhile goal that I strive for every day.  This is one of my favorite quotes from John Lennon:

When I was five years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life.  When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I wrote down 'happy'.  They told me I didn't understand the assignment, and I told them they didn't understand life.

I was in an airport bookstore when I first picked up The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin.  I was hooked by the blurb on the back cover, because it sounded a lot like me. I'm not an unhappy person - I've got a supportive husband, two awesome kids, a comfortable home, a fulfilling business, and good health.  But I definitely could be happier.

For me, this book wasn't a step by step guide to achieving happiness.  A lot of Ms. Rubin's suggestions were pretty basic stuff that we've all heard a million times.  But it did force me to be more mindful of my happiness, and to set up a "Happiness Project" of my own.  

The author's sense of humor, research and presentation of positive psychology, and use of philosophy made the book very enjoyable - just reading it made me smile!

Although I didn't follow every suggestion in The Happiness Project, it did inspire me to look for more happiness in my every day life - and who couldn't use more of that?