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June 1 - July 3, 2023
Success in life is often measured by title, salary, and recognition of achievement, even though most of us understand that these things do not necessarily make for a happy life on their own.
feeling that our life is here, now, and the things we need for a good life are over there, or in the future. Always just out of reach.
the good life unfolds, through time. It is a process.
Life, even when it’s good, is not easy.
Because a rich life—a good life—is forged from precisely the things that make it hard.
the Study set out to understand human
health by investigating not what made people sick, but what made them thrive.
three generations and more than 1,300 of the descendants of its original 724 participants.
book primarily about the power of relationships,
“What is your greatest fear?”
research shows that the act of recalling an event can actually change our memory of
Good relationships keep us healthier and happier. Period.
cultivate warm relationships. Of all kinds.
in an attempt to understand which life factors prevented delinquency,
Why do relationships seem to be the key to a flourishing life? What factors in early childhood shape physical and mental health in mid and late life? What factors are most strongly associated with longer lifespans? Or with healthy relationships? In short:
simply want to “be happy.”
people are terrible at knowing what is good for them.
eudaimonia. It refers to a state of deep well-being in which a person feels that their life has meaning and purpose.
hedonia (the origin of the word hedonism), which refers to the fleeting happiness of various pleasures.
is the kind of well-being that can endure through both the ups and the downs.
in lieu of happiness,
“well-being,” “wellness,” “thriving,” and “flourishing”
thriving and flourishing because
an active and constant state of becoming, rather than just a mood.
health and happiness, meaning and purpose.
patterns begin to emerge, and predictors of human thriving become clear.
They show that people who are more connected to family, to friends, and to community, are happier and physically healthier than people who are less well connected.
People who are more isolated than they want to be find their health declining sooner than people who feel connected to others.
Lonely people also live sho...
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the shadow of loneliness and social disconnection haunts our modern “connected” world.
Is it too late for me?
It is never too late.
Your childhood is not your fate. Your natural disposition is not your fate.
Meaningful change is possible.
it is the quality of your relationships that matters.
living in the midst of warm relationships is protective of both mind and body.
prote...
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predicted how they were going to grow old; it was how satisfied they were in their relationships.
The people who were the most satisfied in their relationships at age 50 were the healthiest (mentally and physically) at age 80.
Our most happily partnered men and women reported, in their 80s, that on the days when they had more physical pain, their mood stayed just as happy.
But when people in unhappy relationships
reported physical pain, their mood worsened, causing them additional e...
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who reported receiving more social support also reported less depression.
social connections in adolescence predicted well-being in adulthood better than academic achievement.
Lao Tzu
“The more you give to others, the greater your abundance”
We discuss the massively important concept of social fitness and why it’s just as crucial as physical fitness. We
how curiosity and attention can improve relationships and well-being;
The good life is right in front of you, sometimes only an arm’s length away. And it starts now.
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