Harvard's Happiness Lab principles to transform work and life

An award-winning team of journalists, designers, and videographers who tell brand stories through Fast Company's distinctive lens Back in college, I (like so many undergraduates across the country) decided to major in psychology. I was incredibly lucky to study in Harvard’s “Happiness Lab,” which was home to professors and academics who focused on the pursuit of happiness. What is it and how can we achieve it? While my family wondered what on earth I was learning there, that period of study gave me a few critical lessons early on that have fully transformed my approach to work and life. I credit much of this thinking to the Positive Psychology work of my TA, Shawn Achor, and my thesis advisor, Tal Ben-Shahar. Whenever I come across a roadblock at work or face a major life decision, I always come back to the principles I learned there. So, what’s the secret to happiness? We all have simple rituals that ground our day-to-day life, like grabbing an iced coffee on the way to work and chatt

An award-winning team of journalists, designers, and videographers who tell brand stories through Fast Company's distinctive lens Back in college, I (like so many undergraduates across the country) decided to major in psychology. I was incredibly lucky to study in Harvard’s “Happiness Lab,” which was home to professors and academics who focused on the pursuit of happiness. What is it and how can we achieve it? While my family wondered what on earth I was learning there, that period of study gave me a few critical lessons early on that have fully transformed my approach to work and life. I cred