Latest "Happiness" Posts

Today is my 50th birthday.After reflecting on what has transpired over the last year, I realized that the past 12 months were a lot like the year before that.My income is pretty much the same.I am still giving the same number of speeches on innovation. I’m on the road the same number of days. I haven’t […]

We have all heard that smiles are contagious.  Is that really the case? There have been numerous studies that show that not only does a smile physiologically change your own mood, but it can also alter the mood of those around you. A smile causes a shift in our brain chemistry that assists us in […]

Time is a fixed commodity.  We all get to enjoy the same 24 hours a day as everyone else.  But for some, this is not enough to do everything they want. Therefore, whenever I am on the road and I am deciding how to spend my time, I ask, “Is this something I can only […]

Here is the transcription of yesterday’s video… This week I’m going to talk about ways that you can work a heck of a lot less, while having a much better life. On Wednesday, I’m going to talk about a philosophy that I call the “20/80/80 principle.” It’s a way for extracting the greatest amount of […]

Today’s Monday Morning Movie, shot in Las Vegas… It is common for people to want more. We want a bigger house. A nicer car. Cooler furniture. But sometimes the key to living a successful life is to want less; to focus on appreciation rather than accumulation. The fewer things you have, the clearer your mind and […]

Today I am thrilled to share with you a 45 minute conversation between me and Oliver Burkeman, the author of The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking. I met Oliver several years ago. We got connected through a book review he did back in 2007 for the Guardian newspaper in England. He […]

In my book, “Goal-Free Living,” I talk about the importance of Seeking Out Adventure.  Trying new things is one avenue for enhancing your creativity.  As Steve Jobs once said, “Creativity is just having enough dots to connect. Dots being ideas or experiences.”  He claims that people who are more creative have had more experiences.  Well, […]

While on vacation recently, I thought to myself, “This is perfect.”  The weather was nice.  We had a great hotel room.  The food was wonderful. Was it really perfect? Were there nicer rooms, better food, and warmer climates?  Indeed. Comparatively speaking, it was not truly perfect. But perfection in such matters is a state of […]

Friday evening, on JetBlue flight #1696 from Orlando to Boston, we had a bit of a problem. About an hour outside of Boston, the pilot got on the intercom and told us that the main braking system was not working.  Although the back-up system would probably work just fine, they were preparing us for the […]

It is the Monday after the Superbowl.  While scanning the TV stations and flipping through the radio channels this morning, it seemed as though everyone was discussing and analyzing (and analyzing and analyzing…) the football game.  Everyone is a Monday morning quarterback. Come on, get a life!  Stop living your life through someone else. Tom […]

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