Is Happiness the Beginning or the End?

Happiness is one of the leading and widespread but simultaneously complex and controversial topics for research and discussion. All people, in one way or another, strive for their personal understanding of happiness, but achieving this is not so easy. Perceiving the state of happiness not as an end goal but as an ongoing process and even a tool for achieving other goals can help in finding it.

Many people believe they would be happier if they had more money or a better job. Thus, they consider the state of happiness as something that will come after this, sometime later. The article by Anderson (2014) offers a new approach to this problem. Contrary to popular belief that happiness is something one has to work hard to earn, it should be taken as a starting point, not a goal.

The author emphasizes that the brain is not set up to find lasting happiness from success. As soon as people achieve a goal, they experience pleasure only for a short time and then set themselves new, more serious, and challenging goals each time. In contrast, our brains are wired to respond well to happiness. Happiness stimulates the brain to release dopamine, which promotes learning and creativity. In Achor’s study, which the author cites in the article, a happy brain is 31% more productive than an unhappy one. Thus, a person who is initially happy is more likely to succeed than someone who makes success a condition for happiness.

According to Anderson (2014), anyone can learn to be happier by following a five-part process: gratitude, journaling, exercise, meditation, and occasional acts of kindness. These practices won’t help change reality, but they can change the lens through which the brain perceives the world and shapes reality. By changing this lens, it becomes possible to change the perception of happiness and, with it, to stimulate the achievement of success, working more productively from the state of happiness.

Reference

Anderson, J. (2014). Is Happiness the Beginning or the End? Web.

Appendix A

Use these guidelines if the customer asks for appendices. The first paragraph of the appendix should be flush with the left margin. Additional paragraphs should be indented.

Begin each appendix on a new page with the word “Appendix” at the top center. Use an identifying capital letter (e.g., Appendix A, Appendix B, etc.) if you have more than one appendix. If you are referring to more than one appendix in your text, use the plural appendices (APA only).

Label tables and figures in the appendix as you would in the text of your manuscript, using the letter A before the number to clarify that the table or figure belongs to the appendix.

Appendix B

Demographic Information for Cummings et al. (2002)’s Review

If an appendix consists entirely of a table or figure, the title of the table or figure should serve as the title of the appendix.

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PsychologyWriting. (2024, January 28). Is Happiness the Beginning or the End? https://psychologywriting.com/is-happiness-the-beginning-or-the-end/

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"Is Happiness the Beginning or the End?" PsychologyWriting, 28 Jan. 2024, psychologywriting.com/is-happiness-the-beginning-or-the-end/.

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PsychologyWriting. (2024) 'Is Happiness the Beginning or the End'. 28 January.

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PsychologyWriting. 2024. "Is Happiness the Beginning or the End?" January 28, 2024. https://psychologywriting.com/is-happiness-the-beginning-or-the-end/.

1. PsychologyWriting. "Is Happiness the Beginning or the End?" January 28, 2024. https://psychologywriting.com/is-happiness-the-beginning-or-the-end/.


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PsychologyWriting. "Is Happiness the Beginning or the End?" January 28, 2024. https://psychologywriting.com/is-happiness-the-beginning-or-the-end/.