
Things I do to be consistently happy - Katelyn
http://joel.is/post/29704334130/6-things-i-do-to-be-consistently-happy
======
nostromo
I have a theory. I think that self-help books and articles actually make
people miserable. I'm quite happy, and I manage to be happy without having a
list of the 6 essential things I must do every day to stay happy.

In my personal life, the people most into self-help books and the like are the
least happy. Correlation doesn't prove causation, so I can't blame the books
and blogs -- but they certainly don't seem to be helpful either.

edit: I meant this as a light-hearted observation, not as a put-down to anyone
who finds self-help helpful. :) I do think however that it's possible to
become less happy by trying to over-optimize every moment of your life.

~~~
dkarl
Have you ever helped someone figure out how to do something with their
computer by just asking them questions? "What program did you use to do this
last time? Good, start that program. What do you mean what do I.... [sigh]
Okay, where do you go to start programs? Great. Yes, go there." They know
everything but sometimes they seem incapable of putting it together. Life's
like that for some people. You make a pot of coffee at 8pm, you skip a
workout, you work when you should relax and relax when you should work. You
avoid activities that make you happy and spend your time on things that just
make you tired. You procrastinate paying a parking ticket (non-negotiable,
takes five minutes) because reloading the national news seems more urgent. In
some sense you know everything you need to know. You're like a befuddled
computer user who seems completely helpless but who only needs a couple of
simple reminders to get back on the right track.

There are many ways to characterize or explain why people who can describe a
clear path to a better life have trouble following it. One way is to label it
a deficit in executive function. To me it doesn't feel right to call it a
deficit. I think of it as chronic interference with or co-option of the
executive function by other factors. But either way, whether you think of it
as weak executive function or a normal executive function overpowered by
interference, the inmates are running the asylum, and your executive function
is the asylum director cowering in his office mumbling, "I am in control. I
told them to set the mattresses on fire; that was my idea."

The purpose of self-help writing is to put the executive function back in
charge. For a lot of people, all they need is a brief reminder and a little
injection of optimism, and a five-minute read like this blog post is useful
for that. It's also important to grapple with the psychological factors that
hijack your executive function in the first place, but if a few minutes of
fluffy reading can do the trick for right now, there's no reason to say no to
it.

~~~
itmag
_There are many ways to characterize or explain why people who can describe a
clear path to a better life have trouble following it._

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akrasia>

------
adriand
I find it somewhat interesting how often people profess that their key to
happiness essentially boils down to living the sort of "good life" that in
many ways is the Christian ideal, regardless of whether or not they are
personally religious.

Although there are habits and rituals that can lead to a more positive
outlook, such as exercising regularly, there are deeper aspects to this way of
life. This includes helping others, which is featured in this article, but
also includes dealing with others fairly and honestly (aka the Golden Rule),
being willing to put others above yourself (at least part of the time),
optimizing for long-term gain (the religious may be looking beyond death but
there's also value in a somewhat shorter view), and so on.

Add in hard work and self-betterment ("Learn new skills") and it's not just a
Christian outlook, it's downright Protestant.

But given the complexity of human nature, surely there are other ways to be
happy. One option, generally only successfully exercised by the very rich, is
to engage in constant luxurious pleasure. In spite of the fact that a majority
of the planet's humans likely would be happy to adopt this way of life, we're
told that the individuals who do are not actually happy and would be better
off living like hard-working American Protestants.

At the other extreme is asceticism, which supposedly can lead to a life of
satisfaction and contentment, if not happiness, but it generally seems to be a
case of extreme long-term optimization, with little if anything in the way of
short-term rewards. In any case, it's not a realistic life choice for me,
since I have a family and no desire to leave them behind to live in a desert
monastery.

So besides living the life of a monk, living the Protestant work ethic, and
living the life of a dissolute jetsetter, what else is there that seems to
offer a convincing chance at happiness?

~~~
shawnz
> essentially boils down to [...] the Christian ideal

Why is this unexpected? From my nonreligious standpoint, I see Christianity
(and indeed, most religions) as a device created _specifically_ for this
reason -- to allow people to be content with themselves. To me, it makes
perfect sense that any given life philosophy will align with the general
tenets of most religions; they wouldn't have stuck around if they made people
feel less satisfied!

~~~
adriand
> Why is this unexpected? From my nonreligious standpoint, I see Christianity
> (and indeed, most religions) as a device created specifically for this
> reason -- to allow people to be content with themselves.

I'd like to clarify that I see a difference between the so-called Christian
"way of life" and the Christian "way of thinking". The activities and
behaviours (e.g. hard work, fair dealing, etc.) of the Christian way of life
may lead to happiness, but the thoughts and mindset of the Christian way of
thinking may not (e.g. guilt over over normal sexual desires).

In fact, I think that many religions, and this especially goes for more
severe, "by the book" versions of Christianity, actually make people much less
content with themselves, but they carry on spreading themselves in spite of
(or because of) this anyway.

What I think is interesting, though, is the effectiveness of certain
_behaviours_ as a means of achieving happiness, and what that means for the
course of human civilization. Perhaps it is the case that (most) humans need
to work in order to be happy. What does this mean when we arrive at a level of
technological sophistication that makes work unnecessary?

In fact, it is possible in Western societies not to work and to still enjoy a
level of comfort that is higher than that achievable by someone who was
working 12 hour days 150 years ago. However, doing this is frowned upon. Why?
Is it because not working is fundamentally incompatible with the "good life"
and by extension, happiness?

And is it the case that treating others fairly and honestly is genuinely an
integral part of achieving happiness, quite aside from the fact that not doing
so might lead to negative consequences for oneself? Or is that just something
learned?

Is it actually impossible to live a happy, contented life that is
characterized by indolence and a total disregard for the feelings and property
of others, or is that just something we must all believe or civilization will
just fall apart?

~~~
blvr
_> >> I'd like to clarify that I see a difference between the so-called
Christian "way of life" and the Christian "way of thinking". The activities
and behaviours (e.g. hard work, fair dealing, etc.) of the Christian way of
life may lead to happiness, but the thoughts and mindset of the Christian way
of thinking may not (e.g. guilt over over normal sexual desires)._

 _> >> In fact, I think that many religions, and this especially goes for more
severe, "by the book" versions of Christianity, actually make people much less
content with themselves, but they carry on spreading themselves in spite of
(or because of) this anyway._

Just curious what your exposure to Christianity is?

Reason being is that I've gone from a secular background to belonging to a
very devout church and in my experience Christians are much happier. Sexual
self-denial isn't a problem and it seems that if anything it leads to
happiness, considering the amount of personal problems indulging every sexual
desire causes.

 _> >> Perhaps it is the case that (most) humans need to work in order to be
happy. What does this mean when we arrive at a level of technological
sophistication that makes work unnecessary?_

If we do ;-)

~~~
rblackwater
> in my experience Christians are much happier

Maybe because when they do something wrong, they believe an imaginary being
will forgive and still love them; or if they encounter difficulty, they can
beg this imaginary being to help and think they're doing something meaningful.

~~~
timtadh
> believe an imaginary being

Needlessly condescending. I am sure the parent is well aware of the "imaginary
being" criticism of his belief.

~~~
rblackwater
I felt the parent and grandparents were being condescending. I have no
regrets.

------
csallen
I'm curious how many programmers find themselves most productive at specific
times of the day. Personally, I'm _by far_ the most productive late at night,
in 1am - 4am territory.

The primary reason is that there are fewer distractions. The news cycle has
slowed, my FB news feed is all but dead, I'm not receiving any
emails/calls/chats, my roommates are asleep, and it's too late to accomplish
chores like shopping or doing laundry. I'm also less likely to _desire_
switching to another task, having accomplished them all earlier in the day. In
other words, when I get into the zone late at night, I'm more likely to _stay_
in the zone.

Another reason has to do with the pressure of a deadline. The later it gets,
the stronger that nagging feeling is in the back of my mind telling me, "It's
late. Go to bed." Nothing gets me working more efficiently than a rapidly
approaching deadline. And, unlike most deadlines, I can continually push this
one back: "1AM? Okay one more hour. 2AM? Shit, just one more hour." I can
spend an almost indefinite amount of time in "deadline mode".

Of course this only works if you don't have anything important to wake up for
in the morning.

~~~
leftnode
It's funny you call that late at night, I call it early in the morning. But I
totally agree with you. I wake up daily at 3:10 and can get about 3 or 4 hours
of good uninterrupted work done. It's also a great time to go to the gym
because few else are there.

~~~
corin_
There's a huge difference in the context between 3am "late at night" because
you've stayed awake or 3am "early in the morning" because you just woke up.
Some will hate one but not the other - personally I find them equally useful
times for different reasons.

------
exch
At the risk of going completely off topic and being all philosophical:

Can someone explain to me what 'being happy' means?

I have consistently failed to answer anyone who asked me if I was happy or
not. All I can say is that I am content or not. Which, for me, means that I am
satisfied with the situation I am in. I can do what I want to do, when I want
to do it and do not have to be bothered by things that do not interest me.

Happiness, on the other hand, is not something I understand. It feels like an
utterly inappropriate term to use to describe this particular sensation. I
have always regarded it as this magical state of being that would be used by
people who also talk of 'achieving ultimate enlightenment'.

"The ultimate goal in life is to be happy" is what I hear regularly. And I
have to keep wondering what could possibly be so wonderful about it that makes
this worth being the sole focus of a person's life?

edit: Fixed some grammar.

~~~
stavrianos
Happiness is a fairly broad category of mental states, which encompasses
contentment. Happiness is linked to both a set of internal subjective feelings
(impossible to describe, as there's no reference point. See also: the color
red), and to a particular set of external behaviours which are consistent
across the majority of humans (smiling, laughing, etc). If I wanted to
communicate the internal subjective experience of happiness, I'd do it the
same way I would the subjective experience of a color- I'd wait until I saw
you experiencing it, and then I'd say "That feeling, right there. That's
happiness." This is easier with colors, because I could just point to one, but
it works with emotions too.

Much like yourself, I tend to think of happiness as a barometer of sorts. If
I'm unhappy, it means that something's wrong which needs fixing. It's not hard
to see how this perspective can be reversed, though. To say that I seek to be
happy and I do so by finding/building a satisfactory environment, or to say
that I seek a satisfactory environment and I gauge this via happiness- in
practical terms these perspectives are indistinguishable.

~~~
thanos2014
kala ta pes dike mou.

------
overboard
I have two issues with this advice. One is, it's incredibly robotic. The same
routine every day, the same times doing the same things, the same route every
evening. Basically he is creating boredom. I have no trouble believing that it
makes the st of his life more interesting. Would I want to follow that?
Hardly. Responding to my environment, doing unexpected things, improvisation,
these are things that make me happy. I get bored doing the same thing twice,
there is no way on earth I joule be able to robotically do the same freaking
routine every day.

Second: this life advice clearly comes from someone without a family. I read
some comments stating that his routine is conductive to a family friendly life
style, and in theory it is. But young children do not care about theory. They
have dreams, don't want to sleep yet, throw up, get sick and a million more
things. Every one of which would ruin this guy's schedule. Also, he never goes
out, a movie or dinner? There's never a concert in town? Friends and family to
visit?

Seriously, it's advice from a person with no social contacts (IRL) who has
discovered bliss by living like a monk. Thanks, but no thanks.

~~~
inthewoods
I had the exact same thought - made me want to do a parody where I talk about
getting up at 6am to contemplate the day, but all I end up doing is getting
Apple Jacks for my three kids and snarf down coffee attempting to jack into
the day.

------
xiaoma
I've never felt that great during those times I've had to regularly be up
early school or work. Back when I was on the swim team and regularly got up by
5am, I was _not_ a happy camper.

The happiest time I've had, my schedule was this: I slept from 5am to noon. I
generally drank 1.5L of water and did about a 90 minute run right after
getting up, showered, put on my suit and hit the office by 2:30pm. I stayed
until about 11pm, then went out with my friends for seafood, veggies and beer
at a 熱炒 (stir fry?) restaurant. Then, I'd come home at about 1:30 and do some
work on my computer until 4am. After that I'd watch a video online, write a
couple of note to myself for the next day and go to bed.

I completely agree with the blogger on the impact of exercising, continual
learning, and helping others. It's not the most important stuff, though. I've
found that having really good friends matters at least as much as any of his
keys to happiness. Being in love doesn't hurt, either.

~~~
reledi
_I've never felt that great during those times I've had to regularly be up
early school or work._

Perhaps it's because you didn't voluntarily choose to wake up at those times.
You had to wake up early for tasks that you had to do, even if unwilling that
day. With little time to get ready, you'd also feel rushed.

With your happiest schedule, you have more control over when you can start
working, and you also have a decent amount of time to get ready, so you feel
more relaxed. Your happiest schedule also includes daily exercise,
socializing, and entertainment.

~~~
SoftwareMaven
I wish it was that easy. The reality is that there are _early birds_ and
_night owls_ (see, e.g.,
[http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/01/080126-sleep...](http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/01/080126-sleep-
genes.html)). There is no question in my mind that I am a night owl. My "nap
time" is around 4-5pm, which, if I succumb to, will keep me awake until 2-3pm.
I am also completely useless before 10am, regardless of whether I get up at
5am or 9:55am.

It sucks to be a night owl in an early bird world.

~~~
chii
> It sucks to be a night owl in an early bird world.

this is actually quite interesting - you'd think that humans who are less
functional during the day time may be at an evolutionary disadvantage during
pre-historic times. However, a lot of animals actually tend to be active at
night, and so in theory, easier to catch prey at night!

~~~
SoftwareMaven
From what I understand from the limited reading I've done, it is more like
"night guard" versus "morning guard". Somebody needed to be up at night when
the ("insert night feeding predator of choice") came to town.

My guess is that it wasn't until after we built a world of walls that most
people could sleep comfortably at night.

~~~
ajuc
I've read somewhere that the natural sleep regime for human is to sleep for a
few hours after the night come, wake up and be active for 1-2 hours around
midnight, and then go back to sleep and only weak up in the morning.

There: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Segmented_sleep>

------
diego
There is no such thing as "consistently happy." If you're interested in the
subject, I recommend paying attention to Daniel Kahneman's work instead of
vapid self-helpy blog posts.

[http://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_kahneman_the_riddle_of_exper...](http://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_kahneman_the_riddle_of_experience_vs_memory.html)

[http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-
Kahneman/dp/...](http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-
Kahneman/dp/0374275637)

------
larrys
One thing that I am impressed with is that Joel (OP) is good at following
advice.

About 7 days ago I commented that I thought his post was inappropriately named
(I took issue with Joel using "How to name your startup" rather than "my
experience with how I named my startup" (because of what I felt was his
limited experience in this area).

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4371318>

On this post he titles correctly "6 Things _I do_ to be consistently happy".

~~~
kami8845
I think you're overestimating your involvement in the naming of this blogpost.

~~~
megablast
Hey, whatever keeps this guy happy.

~~~
larrys
A few things.

My comment doesn't exclude what happened having other causes.

But more importantly you've hit upon an important point which is it's not what
people think of you but what _you think people think of you_.

The guy driving down the street who thinks he's hot shit in the fancy car,
well, assuming it makes him happy the important thing is more what he thinks
of himself driving that car than what anonymous people on the street really
think.

I know a person who would revel and think they were sooo great for doing the
smallest things (say getting an extra discount at the store or finding a good
seat at a concert). It pumped them up and made them feel good. They had no
self doubt and high self esteem. They just thought they were so smart.

What's wrong with that? As you say "hey whatever keeps this guy happy".

Of course there are always those (the parent you responded to) that will rain
on a parade.

------
oceanician
I'm at my happiest when I've 3-6 months of living expenses in my bank account.
This is freedom.

However, getting there without going through a gruelling 9-5 existence can be
demotivating. You have to do it. People will probably be happiest getting
advice on how to be content in an unhappy (/less than ideal) work environment,
as this is what most people have to do.

Unless you're lucky enough to find the right collaborators, and funding, or
stumble into an idea that makes money from the start, or start trying to do
your own thing early on in your 20s when time doesn't matter so much, you're
going to have to do the 9-5, and save up, and instead of buying a house take
some time off for your own ideas.

Cycle to work. Live closer to work. Take your lunch break & have a stroll.
Don't eat too many pizzas or chips. See some friends at least twice a week.
Cook a nice meal for a mate. See an amazing film. Don't watch live tv. Find
projects to work on with people you like, and that they're also motivated by.
Ask someone you like out on a date, at least once a month. Be ambitious, but
don't beat yourself up for not achieving. Learn from mistakes - actually
recognise improvements, but don't beat yourself up for not doing them..they'll
be another time. Ignore fluffy people - there's nothing going on below their
superficial surfice. Live within your means; don't buy a new shiney device if
you can't afford it when something else will do the same job. Save money for a
rainy day.

[Edit:updated a spelling mistake, and added below] Practicalities like finding
a good house mate, that allows you to have a good 8 hour sleep, whilst
maintaining a degree of interesting human contact allude me.

------
kghose
I think the only thing I would add to this very sensible list is to have
multiple, different classes of tasks that engage different skills. This way
you can often work very long but not feel tired or bored.

------
tlogan
One thing which I noticed (and I'm sad because that seems to be trend for a
new generation) that none of 6 things is related to family and friends.
Something like having sex (directly correlated with happiness), drinking with
friends, small rituals like morning coffee with your spouse, hanging out with
kids, etc.

In other words, I doubt that these 6 things will make anybody happy if there
is no family and partner next to you. These 6 points are very important to
ensure that you are not stressed out - but not really happy.

------
govind201
This article resonates with me on so many levels. When I started working on
Semantics3 early this year, I spent many a day frustrated that I was barely
achieving 50% of the productivity that I was capable of and I felt quite
miserable about it. Here are a few things I did to get things back on track:

1) Moved Closer to Work: Daily long journeys are massive downers. When I awake
in the morning, I often feel the urge to hit my laptop right away and channel
all the early morning enthusiasm towards work. College years were ideal on
this front because there was never anywhere to be (I wasn't too inclined
towards attending classes ;)). Anyway, now, I live 20 mins away from work.

2) Stopped Listening to Music (especially during the few hours after I awake):
I'm a music buff and perennially have music in my ears. But I find that music
often blocks useful thoughts; letting the mind wander leads me down
interesting channels, be it more ideas for my startup or even bugs in my code
that I discover by merely thinking about the previous day's work (Rob Pike's
"Best Programming Advice" comes to mind). Few things are more satisfying than
stumbling on these nuggets! These days, I restrict music to certain times of
day, such as my ride home or during certain phases during the work day.

3) Found Time at Work Alone: I like getting to work a couple of hours before
everyone else, before any distractions kick in. For some of you, staying at
work an hour after everyone leaves, lunchtime, or even spending an hour at
home to finish things up might do the trick. Those power-charged hours make me
feel like I've given that extra bit to my day. On a related note, check out
PGs "Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule"
(www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html)

------
mparlane
Why is being in love not mentioned? Or sex?

Are you just happier being alone?

~~~
ams6110
I don't know anything about the author, but sounds to me like he's a person
who's not in a relationship and almost certainly doesn't have young children.
Many of the things in his routine would be nearly impossible to do for a
person who's in a "family"

~~~
eric_cc
I disagree with you. He basically recommends a sleeping pattern, having fun,
exercising, learning, helping others, finding ways to win. Which of these is
impossible for people in a family? If many of these 6 things...lets say 4 of
them... are nearly impossible for people in families then you'd think people
in families would all be quite unhealthy.

~~~
ssfak
Well, he recommends to stick to a specific schedule (having a walk at 21:30,
going to sleep at 22:00, waking up at 06:00, etc) The exact times do not
really matter, but sticking to a specific time schedule is problematic IMHO
when you have a family because of the non-determinism introduced (especially
by the kids).. Unless everyone in your family agrees to follow (and stick to)
a similar schedule..

------
JosephRedfern
Surely happiness is relative? I'm sure that many people who we think of as
having shitty lives often feel "happy". If you're "consistently happy", then
doesn't that just become the norm? To me, happiness is the peaks from the
"norm" - if I was consistently happy, then I'd have to re-define what happy
meant to me.

~~~
joesb
> To me, happiness is the peaks from the "norm"

What you consider the "norm" doesn't have to be the real norm of your own
life. What you consider the peak doesn't actually have to be actual peak,
either. It's partly your ability to perceive it so.

People who suffer depression don't necessarily have more shitty life than
others. The similar question can be asked: "why would they feel sad, doesn't
sadness becomes the 'norm' for them?".

> To me, happiness is ...

If you are happy with your definition of happiness, then it's cool. But if you
are not happy that you don't satisfy "your own" definition of happiness, then
you should consider re-define it. Happiness exists to make you happy, not to
make you suffer.

------
seanalltogether
Honestly I believe going to the gym every morning M-F is the single biggest
improvement to my life. There's something about forcing your muscles into
"adapt or you'll fail" mode that has amazing downstream effects on energy
levels, eating and digestion, sleeping, etc...

------
mitsche
The first two points (waking up early, exercising daily) make me happy, too.
Compared to not doing those things, the difference is enormous. I would have
thrown 'eating clean' in there as well.

The other points I agree with, too. But in my experience the first two points
organically lead to the later ones.

On a side note: I'm an atheist and raised as such. I don't think guilt,
dogmatic thinking, and the fear(!) of an afterlife would be conducive to my
happiness. The intersection between The Christian Way Of Life and the OP's
original points is so random and incomplete, you could just as well draw a
connection to Scientology and be more spot-on (and still–for all practical
purposes–not be spot-on at all).

------
AznHisoka
Sound advice, especially the part about having multiple ways to win. I'm
happier when I'm more gentle to myself for things I have little to no control
over such as winning the startup lottery, ranking high in Google, or physical
shortcomings.

~~~
il
Aren't those all examples of things that you do have a great amount of control
over? I personally feel like I've already won the lottery for all of the
things I have no control over: living in a wealthy country, not having to
worry about food or water, being reasonably healthy and having access to
healthcare, etc.

~~~
elmuchoprez
_"I personally feel like I've already won the lottery for all of the things I
have no control over: living in a wealthy country, not having to worry about
food or water, being reasonably healthy and having access to healthcare,
etc."_

Do you actually feel like you've "won the lottery" or do you just try to
remind yourself how lucky you are? I've read a number of studies that suggest
we internally compare our status relative to those around us. So while I don't
have to worry about access to clean water (which much world doesn't have), I
don't personally know anyone without access to clean water, so I don't really
feel all that lucky about it.

Conversely, I don't personally know anyone with $100 million, so if I won $100
million in the lottery, I would feel quite lucky.

I guess I ask because I'm curious if you can actually "force" or reason
yourself into feeling lucky, or if that feeling is dependent on your
environment.

~~~
exch
I think this also has to do with your own experiences in life so far.

I can identify with il's point in that regard. My life so far has had its
share of downs. So now that everything is going well, I keep being reminded of
the importance of having the simple things in life and how I am very lucky to
have a roof over my head, a decent meal every day and close friends I care
about and who care about me. As far as that goes, I do actually feel I have
won the lottery. What else could I possibly want or need?

All this has completely done away with any sense of ambition I had years ago.
back then, I had to have a high paying job, fancy gadgets and everything that
came with 'being successful' (or so I thought). I have now realized that none
of this matters even a tiny bit. To me at least it is all completely
irrelevant. I learned to take nothing for granted and its the simple things I
mentioned which make it all worth it for me.

------
mingmecca
I strive for consistent happiness, yet it remains elusive despite my best
efforts. I do a number of the things mentioned in the article but they only
get me halfway there because I live in an area of the USA that doesn't get
enough light most of the year - the Pacific Northwest. Low level clouds
completely sap the energy from me and a number of people here, and it is not
something that one has much control over.

I'm no stranger to light boxes, vitamin D, fish-oil,and anti-depressants, but
there is nothing like a bright, sunny day to get my mood up. Unfortunately I
can't summon those types of days by sheer force of will.

------
OmIsMyShield
I would love a view into the self-talk /automatic thoughts that (self-
professed consistently) happy people have.

What goes through your mind when you are stressed or anxious? What is the
immediate, automatic, unblockable thought(s) that come up?

What is the first visceral response when you have setback?

What is the script that plays when you are exhausted?

I think the author's habits are admirable, but also think that they might be
symptoms (rather than the cause) of a another form of health - a mind that is
filled with patterns of thought that lead to happiness, and I would enjoy
seeing into those minds a whole lot. Anyone?

------
MichailP
I think there exists a terrible confusion about emotions in general fueled by
pop culture. People should understand that emotions are just a form of
motivation and not something magical. Unpleasant emotions don't have purpose
to make you feel bad, they are here to help you to better adapt to your
environment. Pleasant ones mean that you are well adapted. Simple as that.
Also I would like to add that on the topic of happiness and other stuff
related to positive psychology there is an excellent course from prof. Tal
Ben-Shahar.

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bialecki
He mentions regularly helping people and then doesn't mention it in the
context of how Buffer makes people happy. It's probably assumed, but worth
saying: if you're working at a startup, one of the best (maybe the best)
feeling is your users telling you how your work is helping them.

It's easy to get caught up in other stuff or forget, but talking to your
users/customers and asking them how you're making their lives better is often
very revealing and rewarding. It might feel scary/weird to ask, but the
answers are awesome.

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Ramario
I can relate to this article. I've found that waking up at 6am and going for a
jog was a great way to start the day. Also, as a programmer you can lose all
sense of time whilst pounding away at a project. My way of disengaging from
that is going to the gym, the cinema or just hanging out with friends. You
must be sure to not get lost in the start-up race and do things that have
nothing to do with your start-up every now and then at least. Great article!

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mirsadm
I think its solid advice on a bunch of things you can do to feel energetic and
alert every day. I'm not sure I would have used the word "happy" but the
advice is good. I follow similar routines and I found myself feeling
fantastic.

Occasionally I'll pig out with food, stop going to the gym etc and I notice a
huge difference in my energy levels and my motivation towards work and life in
general.

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RockofStrength
I've read many books on happiness. My favorite was the one by Desmond Morris:
[http://www.amazon.com/The-Nature-Happiness-Desmond-
Morris/dp...](http://www.amazon.com/The-Nature-Happiness-Desmond-
Morris/dp/1904435572)

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prezjordan
While I might not necessarily follow these (I'm a firm believer that its your
personal duty to find what works for you, and someone else's advice won't
help) but it was very refreshing to read this, especially how you laid it all
out.

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hobbyist
I particulary found Shawn Achor's ted talk on happiness to be the best
<http://goodthinkinc.com/speakers/shawn-achor/>

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heykoo
If you have problems disengaging from your work, I strongly recommend having a
go at archery. Focusing on nothing but a spot of gold way down the field does
wonders for clearing your head :)

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SonicSoul
i don't know about having to do all these things every day, but getting closer
to your goals, feeling spiritually and physically healthy, and helping others
WILL make you happier. regardless of the source that lead you to do it (self
help, religion, up-bringing,..). i'd also add meditation to the list.

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nachteilig
Kind of reads like blogspam. I'm always suspicious any time someone writes one
of these 'n things to x' posts.

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mirz
I've been pouring in the 16 hour days for a year now and executing well, but
neglecting any sort of balance in my life. All the added stress has made me
neglect my family and definitely eliminated any personal time.

I decided to do something about it in June.

Exercise has made a big impact. I started running almost every morning and
logging 20M+ weekend mountain bike rides. I've realized that you need to keep
your cardio strong and your physique honed or the lifestyle will simply make
you pudgy and listless. Great Founders know how to eat right, work out right,
and feel right. This is like running a marathon, so you must live your life
like a marathon runner. I've also heard that its good to do some sport where
you can hit something. Tennis, boxing, hockey, or martial arts, let you hit
something hard and get the negative energy out.

I used to stay up working until 3 or 4am quite regularly but now walk away
from my computer by 1AM so that I can get at least 6 hours of sleep. I think
sleep deprivation is a reality for most startup entrepreneurs.

If you really want to mess your life up, forget to put your family in the
balance. This is your most important asset and precious responsibility. Make
sure you focus here and not only give them dedicated time, but meaningful
time. I reinstated date night with my wife and I'm trying to make an effort to
balance things out in general.

