Can anyone teach you to be happy? Happiness is supposed to come from within, right? These would be your typical reactions too when you’re set to meet a “happiness expert” and consultant “chief happiness officer” to corporate firms. But supposedly not! You can train yourself to be happy.
And therein lies the secret to why Neha Arora Nicholas is in demand. “For most of us happiness is a single fleeting moment — the more you try to catch it, the further it goes away. There are reasons why we can’t think positive thoughts easily. We are wired to think negative — for survival. But you can be in an eternal state of bubbling joy. There are scientific formulae to find permanent happiness,” insists Neha. While her titles are still being digested, she talks of how there is a huge demand for happiness experts in the U.K., U.S.A. and Europe, while in India, it’s still a fledgling idea.
It all began for Neha when she noticed how she herself, her friends, family and colleagues, despite “having it all” — success, fame, a good bank balance, good relationships — were more unhappy than happy. When she started her research, she found that in the last two decades, scientists and researchers had uncovered the science behind what makes people happy, and that there are formulas, techniques and practices that help people hold on to happiness.
Neha explains how it is seemingly simple, figuring out this happiness, through the chemical in our body — “Our bodies produce what is called ‘happy chemicals’, such as serotonin, dopamine, endorphins, oxytocin etc. that make us feel good, and ‘sad chemicals’ like cortisol that makes us feel bad, angry and sad. The secret to happiness is knowing how to release those happy chemicals, using neuroscience to create the right neural pathways, and learning how to clear ourselves of our stress chemicals.”
She conducts “Oh So Happy” training workshops and gives talks on the subject for corporates, educational institutions and individuals, using a mix of neuroscience and film musicals! Till now she has conducted about 15 workshops for corporates, and 20 public workshops, and three for schools — initially for teachers, but now the demand is for students, what with peer and exam pressure!
“I was shocked when a 12-year-old came up to m and asked ‘Oh my god! We can be happy?’,” she says.
Moreover, we all have a happiness set point says Neha, ranging from 0 to 10 — some are at 3 (the cribbing types), some at 5, some at 7 (those who are relatively happy all the time). “I promise people that their happiness point will increase.” A full day course can cost about Rs. 3,500 and a four-hour corporate session for about 35 people around Rs. 35,000. For details look up www.nehaaroranicholas.com
CREATE YOUR OWN HAPPY
Practice kindness When we give to others it activates areas of the brain associated with pleasure, social connection and trust.
Give a 20-Second hug Every time we hug, touch, kiss, cuddle for 20 seconds or more (even canoodling your pet counts ), our body releases a chemical called oxytocin — “the love hormone”. A hearty bear hug reduces cortisol, the stress hormone, lowers blood pressure, reduces feelings of pain and makes you less vulnerable to infections.
Be grateful Practicing gratitude helps you create positive neural pathways that increase your happiness set point. People who practice gratitude are 25 per cent happier, experience less stress and depression.
Exercise rigorously High energy exercise releases endorphins, and also activates the channels that produce serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine, which make you happy.
Avoid sugar & coffee An excess of sugar and coffee is known to cause disruption in our dopamine levels and affect our happiness levels negatively. They instantly skyrocket blood sugar levels and temporarily raise levels of potent mood chemicals in the brain. This “high” is followed by a low.
HAPPY AT WORK? OR NOT?
Use your strengths at work Science has found that we need to work on our strengths. The science of positive psychology has revealed 24 character strengths that are particularly connected with higher levels of happiness. We each have these strengths in varying degrees.
Have fun at work Vedic wisdom tells us that all creation arises from Lila, or what is called “cosmic play”. We are meant to live in a recreational universe. So make work fun. Laugh more. It will make you more creative, more energetic, more productive.
Sleep well at night Those who are low on sleep do not release as much serotonin during the day, which is a feel good hormone that boosts your mood. If you find you feel more depressed after a night of very little sleep, blame neuro-chemical reactions in the brain.
Two-minute meditation Stress activates your amygdala, creates a red alert, activates your flight-or-fight symptoms, and heats up your system. Your thinking brain gets totally frozen and completely hijacked by your emotional brain. Meditation creates a deep state of rest and triggers the brain to release happy chemicals, help cool your brain, quiet the flight or flight response, and take you to a state of positivity and joy.
Find flow at work Flow is an innately positive experience; it is known to produce intense feelings of enjoyment. It is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process.
