Happy Mind,Happy Life – Caroline Rainsford

This book by Dr Ranjan Chatterjee gives some good guideposts to living a Happier Life.He suggests writing down what a Happy life might look like for you and focusing on your values.He says the more micro stress doses(MSD’S) we absorb in a day,we are pushed further to our stress threshold and we need a way to manage this.He cites a study that links self compassion with better physical health and suggests writing a self compassionate letter /note to yourself on a regular basis and to practice the mirror exercise at the start of your day by saying and writing the things you like about yourself.He says ‘Flow State’ is when we feel most alive and a good way to get into flow is to think about the things/hobbies you loved as a child. He says the story we choose to tell ourself is important and to avoid the “victim” story. Quoting a Harvard study, he says humans need connection and it is the number one predictor of happiness and wellbeing in our lives.Dr Chatterjee says we need to be conscious of the time we spend on social media/phones to manage our wellbeing.He suggests taking daily moving holidays such as walking/running/swimming/yoga/TaiChi to access mental stillness and journalling/gratitude/meditation improves self awareness and alignment. Citing research he says that people who engage in religous practices are happier than those who don’t.He concludes the book by saying it is in the power of all of us to grow more happiness!This is a good book to help improve your Happiness Quota!