Shawn Achor Quotes

“Beliefs are so powerful because they dictate our efforts and actions.”

“Happiness is a mindset for your journey, not the result of your destination.”

“Happiness is not the belief that we don't need to change; it's the realization that we can.”

“I could care less if the glass is half full or half empty as long as I can fill it up.”

“If we study what is merely average, we will remain merely average.”

“It's the lens through which your brain views the world that shapes your reality. And if we can change the lens, not only can we change your happiness, we can change every single educational and business outcome at the same time.”

“Just as our view of work affects our real experience of it, so too does our view of leisure. If our mindset conceives of free time, hobby time, or family time as non-productive, then we will, in fact, make it a waste of time.”

“Research shows you get multiple tasks done faster if you do them one at a time. It also decreases stress and raises happiness.”

“Successful people see adversity as a stepping stone rather than a stumbling block.”

“You have to train your brain to be positive just like you work out your body.”

“As researchers at New York University have found, putting unrealistic, fantastical goals onto a vision board actually makes us feel worse about ourselves because it makes us think we are missing out on life.”

“Before happiness and success comes your perception of your world. So before we can be happy and successful, we need to create a positive reality that allows us to see the possibility for both.”

“Before potential, there is a motivation. Before motivation, there is an emotion. And before emotion, there is your reality.”

“I defined happiness as 'the joy we feel moving toward our potential'.”

“If you want to set the tone or mood, make sure you get some of the first words in.”

“Look around at the people in your office, on the subway, sitting across from you at the cafe. Have you ever wondered if the world you see is the same one they see?”

“Only when we choose to believe that we live in a world where challenges can be overcome, our behavior matters, and change is possible can we summon all our drive, energy, and emotional and intellectual resources to make that change happen.”

“The reason some people see the world so differently from others is that the human brain doesn’t just take a picture of the external world like a camera; it is constantly interpreting and processing the information it receives.”

“Why did some of the impoverished children in Indonesia create a happy playtime with only some sticks and string, while others sat bored and sullen?”

“Constantly scanning the world for the negative comes with a great cost. It undercuts our creativity, raises our stress levels, and lowers our motivation and ability to accomplish goals.”

“Each one of us is like that butterfly in The Butterfly Effect and each tiny move toward a more positive mindset can send ripples of positivity through our organizations our families and our communities.”

“Focusing on the good isn’t just about overcoming our inner grump to see the glass half full. It’s about opening our minds to the ideas and opportunities that will help us be more productive, effective, and successful at work and in life.”

“For me, happiness is the joy we feel striving after our potential.”

“Habits are like financial capital – forming one today is an investment that will automatically give out returns for years to come.”

“I started to realize just how much our interpretation of reality changes our experience of that reality.”

“Meditate. Neuroscientists have found that monks who spend years meditating actually grow their left prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain most responsible for feeling happy. But don’t worry, you don’t have to spend years in sequestered, celibate silence to experience a boost. Take just five minutes each day to watch your breath go in and out.”

“Our fear of consequences is always worse than the consequences themselves.”

“Psychologist Robert Emmons, who has spent nearly his entire career studying gratitude, has found that few things in life are as integral to our well-being. Countless other studies have shown that consistently grateful people are more energetic, emotionally intelligent, forgiving, and less likely to be depressed, anxious, or lonely. And it’s not that people are only grateful because they are happier, either; gratitude has proven to be a significant cause of positive outcomes. When researchers pick random volunteers and train them to be more grateful over a period of a few weeks, they become happier and more optimistic, feel more socially connected, enjoy better quality sleep, and even experience fewer headaches than control groups.”

“Students who were told to think about the happiest day of their lives right before taking a standardized math test outperformed their peers.19 And people who expressed more positive emotions while negotiating business deals did so more efficiently and successfully than those who were more neutral or negative.”

“Studies have found that American teenagers are two and half times more likely to experience elevated enjoyment when engaged in a hobby than when watching TV, and three times more likely when playing a sport. And yet here’s the paradox: These same teenagers spend four times as many hours watching TV as they do engaging in sports or hobbies.”