FEATURE
The Science of
HAPPINESS
Success ≠ happiness
Turning a well-known equation on its head
I BY PAULA LEVIN
Studying computer science at Harvard
University, a top squash player – having
recently won Israel’s National Championships and well on his way to winning the
US Intercollegiate, the young student Tal
ben Shahar epitomised success. Why,
then, was he so unhappy? Fast-forward a
decade or two and Dr Tal ben Shahar, author and lecturer, is now one of the world
experts on positive psychology. In interviews on CNN, Jon Stewart’s Daily Show
and even Chinese TV, he explains that despite what people may believe, success
does not lead to happiness. In fact, it
works in reverse. He was in SA recently, at
the South African Board of Jewish Education’s annual conference, as keynote
speaker on this truly relevant topic to
parents and educators, who may believe
that pushing children to achieve success
will guarantee them happiness.
“I got into positive psychology because
I was unhappy. My grades were excellent;
I had a good social life on campus. I was
at Harvard! But I was very unhappy. I
wanted to find out why.” It turns out, Ben
Shahar was not alone. He reveals that
many Harvard students are so depressed
they can’t function without medication.
He then refers to an interesting study
10 JEWISH LIFE ■ ISSUE 85
that asked professors about their happiness levels at three different intervals surrounding an event called getting tenure.
Tenure is the ultimate goal in the academic
world; it means a job for life at the university, and the prestige that comes with it.
The professors were asked how they felt
two weeks before the news (to get a baseline reading), how they imagined they
would feel the moment they got tenure, or
alternatively, if they were unsuccessful.
And how they imagined they would feel six
months or a year down the line.
They obviously said in the case of tenure they would be ecstatic at that moment, and they believed they would be
happy forever after – that the effect of
this lifetime goal would be, well, a lifetime. And if they were unsuccessful they
would be devastated at that moment and
pretty much mournful for a very, very
long time afterwards, if not forever. The
study then questioned them when they
heard the news and, as predicted, those
who got tenure were ecstatic and those
who didn’t were devastated. What’s really
interesting is how these professors felt
months after the ‘tenure moment’.
Whether or not they received tenure, they
felt the exact same baseline level of happiness as they did before this supposedly
momentous make-or-break life-changing
forever-after event. In other words, success does lead to long-term happiness.
Ben Shahar surreptitiously redefined
the definition of success to include not
just academic achievement, but something that brings the social, emotional
and academic worlds together. Traditional
psychology has the patient sitting on the
couch answering the question: “What’s
wrong?” The trouble with asking what’s
wrong is that you fail to also look for
what’s right. You don’t look at the whole
picture. When you are looking at what’s
wrong, you will definitely find a lot to talk
about that’s wrong and you will feel pretty unhappy about it all. Positive psychology is also about what is going well, what is
working. What are your strengths? The
secret to happiness is reality.
Ben Shahar brilliantly illustrates how
badly things can go wrong when you ask
THE TROUBLE WITH ASKING WHAT’S WRONG IS
THAT YOU FAIL TO ALSO LOOK FOR WHAT’S RIGHT.
YOU DON’T LOOK AT THE WHOLE PICTURE.
PORTRAIT: SUPPLIED
Psychology typically focuses on trying to get those who fall on the negative side of
average to eliminate such ailments as depression and anxiety. In 1998, a man named
Martin Seligman, who at the time was president of the American Psychological
Association, decided it was time to start focusing on the positive side of average – “to
study what works, not just what is broken” – by looking at minds that are healthy and
productive. As a result, positive psychology was born. Teacher, Dr Tal Ben Shahar, and
his student, Shawn Achor, now lead the way in bringing these teachings to the masses.
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