Shawn Achor

Based on the largest study on happiness and human potential ever conducted, Shawn Achor shows how cultivating happiness can make us more effective, successful, and fulfilled in work and life.

Conventional wisdom tells us that success makes us happy. That if we can just win that next promotion, land that next account, happiness will follow. But a decade of cutting-edge research in the field of positive psychology now shows us that the traditional view has it backwards. That happiness actually fuels success and performance, not the other way around. In fact, happiness gives us a distinct competitive advantage in work and life.

Why? Because when we are happier and more positive we are more engaged and motivated. We are more energetic, resilient to stress, and productive. This has been borne out in management studies, peer-reviewed psychological research, and in Achor’s own work with organizations around the globe. Here, Achor offers seven actionable steps we can take to gain the happiness advantage in our own lives.