Happiness Formula In Three Simple Steps

Most people believe that happiness arises from suitable conditions, and that to be happy requires one to find, for example: a good job, a nice house, a new car, etc. However, it is actually more effective to rely on intrinsic ways of finding happiness, rather than through these extrinsic, object-oriented ones. Being happy is actually achieved mostly through one’s behavior and outlook rather than material, situational means. This is why it’s important to start cultivating healthy habits.



Google engineer Chade-Meng Tan is on a mission to make the world more peaceful and people happier. The secret to happiness, he says, is in doing three things every day.

Step one is to “calm your mind” by pausing during the day and paying attention to your breath. Meditation and mindfulness have been shown to offer numerous benefits.

Step two is to “log moments of joy.” All too often we focus on the negative and ignore or overlook the positive moments. Acknowledge more of the good things to counterbalance the negatives.

Step three is to “wish other people to be happy.” Being altruistic can turn around a bad mood and empathy is a very valuable skill. Remind yourself to wish for others’ happiness could, in turn, boost yours.


The video above is Meng talking about some of these concepts at Google’s “Search Inside Yourself” course. Although these three simple steps might not work for everyone, it’s worth a try if it means experiencing more joy.