Action for Happiness

As we begin the new year and people plan their 'resolutions' for 2013, Action for Happiness is encouraging a different approach from the usual, dull self-improvement list. Instead, people are being encouraged to do things to make themselves and others around them happier. Evidence shows that how happy we are has a greater impact on our health and how long we live than stopping smoking or losing weight.

Why do some of us let our work dominate our lives? Why do we so often seem to find it hard to get the balance right? To celebrate National Work-Life Week, Nina Grunfeld looks at practical ways to get a better balance in our lives.

If success is defined by the amount of money made, perhaps an attitude of ruthlessness is necessary. But if instead we are compassionate, not only does it make us feel happy but it also benefits the people around us. While succeeding at the expense of others may mean people admire us, this is not as valuable as friendship. People who live with compassion naturally tend to invite more respect, fuelled by love rather than fear.

A whole host of recent research reports have shown that children in the UK are some of the most pressurised and unhappy in the world. The Save Childhood Movement has been launched in response to the increasing level of concern about the erosion of childhood and the declining health and wellbeing of children in the UK.

A mental health campaign launched last October, and supported by Action for Happiness, has led to the creation of student-led advocacy groups at 25 universities. The campaign, led by Mental Wealth UK, was in response to a report highlighting the threats to student wellbeing. The groups will work to promote good mental health and wellbeing on their campuses throughout 2012.

The simple things in life - like spending time with family - make us the happiest, a survey has revealed. More than a quarter of us say that just having someone be nice to us puts us in a good mood, according to the Feel Good Factor index published by PruHealth. Although squeezed households still love a bargain, most of the things that made us happiest cost nothing.

As a new year approaches and people plan their 'resolutions' for the year ahead, Action for Happiness is encouraging a different approach from the usual, dull self-improvement list. Instead, people are being asked to take the Action for Happiness pledge and do things to make themselves and others happier. Evidence shows that how happy you are can have a greater impact on your health and how long you live than stopping smoking or losing weight.

The path to inner joy is simple – do acts of kindness, relax and be thankful for what you've got. According to Action for Happiness, little things like this can really improve our lives. But can they really work? Hannah Booth spent a week putting them to the test.

In the aftermath of last night's riots in London and other UK cities people are shocked and angry. Happiness seems almost irrelevant. Yet if we stop to look at what might be the underlying drivers of this behaviour, many of these lead back to important issues at the heart of the happiness agenda.

Building strong and authentic relationships with others is one of the most rewarding adventures we can undertake. But it takes time and energy and we need to be prepared to risk being rejected and hurt. Sarah Abell shares ten ways we can invest in better relationships.

Chronic illnesses and disabilities have a dramatic impact on individuals and their families. But research shows that people can successfully achieve a good quality of life despite these severe constraints. We need a more positive and rounded approach to support their well-being.

It is striking how bad most of us are at having a conversation. We get scared of opening our souls because we falsely exaggerate the difference between ourselves and others. We imagine that others don’t share in our vulnerabilities or interests. We display only our strengths and become boring.

When we think of side effects, the first thing that springs to mind are the side effects of drugs. But who'd have thought that kindness could have side effects, too? Well, it does! And positive ones at that. It makes us happier and healthier; it also helps us live longer and have better relationships.

Anthony Seldon reveals the five most important things he has learned in his life. As the head of Wellington College, he threw out GCSEs and established his own curriculum - which includes lessons in happiness.

Friends, family and birthdays top the list of things that UK children say make them happy, a survey suggests. Computer games came in above chocolate, while social networking websites languished below both, in the survey of 1,000 children aged up to 16. Children rated their happiness, on average, at 8.5 out of 10, compared to only 6.5 for adults.

As drivers angrily beeped their horns and cyclists weaved impatiently through London's traffic, Amandeep Hothi stood cheerily on the pavement holding aloft a sign offering, in pink letters, "Free Hugs". Hothi is part of a new group called Action for Happiness, whose members aim to boost the net amount of joy in the world by being kind to others and countering "an epidemic of loneliness and isolation".

Today sees the launch of Action for Happiness - a new mass movement for social change founded by three pioneering thinkers, Richard Layard, Geoff Mulgan and Anthony Seldon. It is based on one simple idea – that if we want a happier society, we've got to approach our own lives in a way that prioritises the things that really matter, including the happiness of those around us.

Lord Richard Layard discusses what we can do to create a happier society. This lecture was presented on 10 March 2011. Lord Layard, Emeritus Professor of Economics at LSE explores four critical areas of our lives that can be optimised to increase happiness: income, human relationships, altruism and work. He goes on to discuss the Action for Happiness movement, which launches on 12 April 2011 and aims to encourage a mass movement of people pursuing a better way of life.

Traditional wisdom states that our younger years are the best of our lives, with the milestone of 40 meaning we are "over the hill" and already on the wane. But in fact satisfaction and optimism steadily increase after middle age, easily eclipsing the earlier years and peaking as late as the eighties, according to research.

One of the most frequent comments I get from parents is, "I just want my kid to be happy." Though an admirable and common objective, happiness is one of the most neglected family values in 21st century America. Few parents grasp the essential meaning of happiness for their children and fewer still understand how they can help their children to find it.

The Children's Society today warns that the current economic situation is having a major impact on children's well-being. In the run-up to next week's budget, the leading children’s charity has released a new report, which found that a decrease in family income is directly related to lower well-being for children.

A lasting marriage does not always signal a happy marriage. Plenty of miserable couples have stayed together for children, religion or other practical reasons. But for many couples, it’s just not enough to stay together. They want a relationship that is meaningful and satisfying.

New report reveals that once you reach a certain level, money does not really bring happiness. “Our research shows that having an intimate relationship is the most important thing. If you’ve got one solid intimate, emotional relationship, then you’re very well off”.

For years, people have assumed their happiness was tied to things like personal success, good health, inner peace, or perhaps the ability to finally fit into a pair of size 4 jeans. Now new research suggests a person’s happiness — or lack thereof — may actually depend on something else entirely: their spouse.

Wellington College, the boarding school that introduced lessons in wellbeing and positive psychology four years ago, is extending happiness classes to parents, too.

A growing school of thought believes that we have actually gained something from the last few years of economic gloom; that we are starting to value the things that matter: our friends, homes and the world we live in. Even more remarkably, they suggest that these things are making us happier than the conspicuous consumption and hedonism of the boom years.