A 6-Year Research Project Found a Surprisingly Simple Route to Happiness

“Let’s stop confusing humanity to think that it’s more difficult than it really is, and give them much clearer guidelines of how to do this,” says psychology professor Todd Kashdan, who runs the Well-Being Lab at George Mason University. “Maybe what we need to reduce all the difficulties internally that people have is … what Anthony’s doing, which is basically have people outward-focused on what do you want to do with your limited time today, this week, this month. And through that, you find yourself not obsessing so much about the chatter that’s going on between your ears.”

In one study, Kashdan had patients with social anxiety disorder describe what they saw as their purpose in life and then had them monitor their efforts toward this purpose every day. After two weeks, they exhibited higher self-esteem, sense of meaning and positive emotions. Days when they reported significant progress toward life purpose were also days with significant boosts in well-being.

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