Happiness project - Monthly update | March 2025

Let’s get into it.

Reflections and progress update

We’re successfully and happily into the third month of the project. I’m enjoying it more and more as time passes. The learnings and the conversations are worth the time I spend on this.

A grouse about my progress is that I mostly ended up reading books. Even though I also plan to read articles and research papers, watch podcasts, and take courses, I eventually end up spending time on books. I guess this is because I spend time on this in the evenings after returning from work, and there is some hesitation in opening the computer again to spend time on other kinds of content. I’m doing terribly on other goals besides reading. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thoroughly enjoying the books, but it feels like that’s all I’m doing.

To solve this, I’ve decided not to set goals on outputs but on habits. Instead of tracking the number of books, articles, or papers read, podcasts and videos watched, conversations, courses and connections made, I’ll track the number of days in a week with at least an hour spent on these things. 3 days for reading books, 2 days for other media and at least 1 day for making notes on everything.

March 2025 has been heavy on happiness philosophies

In March, I observed in multiple instances that the Western and Eastern ways of looking at happiness are quite different. The Western way involves defining, measuring, establishing predictive factors, solving for individual components, actionable short-term interventions and hacks to improve happiness. The Eastern way is centred around life philosophy, abstractions, debates, beliefs, lifelong habits, contemplation and reflection. I realise a balance of both may be necessary to guide oneself in improving one’s happiness. Of course, these ways aren’t strict and rigid for either Western or Eastern practitioners. There will also be umpteen exceptions.

3 concepts learnt in the month

First, my happiness isn't much about myself, yet the only person I can change is me. It’s not about me. Across all the content that I consumed, I observed a common thread highlighting the importance of compassion, kindness, voluntary contribution to others, community feeling, quality social interaction, purposeful work, etc. I guess I’m starting to see the ancient one’s point.

Second, happiness education is necessary. Training the mind to cultivate happier, more positive states of mind is necessary. The Dalai Lama says that the happier or positive states of mind are innate to human nature and are universal. However, they may not automatically manifest themselves. He presents the analogy that the desire for food to sustain life is innate and universal, but one doesn’t automatically know what to eat and how to cook. Learning about nutrition and cooking is important. Similarly, learning about happiness is important.

Third, people underestimate altruism and compassion in others. The reality of others’ actions and our expectations about how they’d act shape our view of the world. Research shows that people, in general, behave more altruistically than we expect them to. If all of us believed a little more in the innate goodness and compassion of others, we’d be more trusting, more at ease and more compassionate ourselves due to our tendencies to reciprocate. I feel this concept has the elements of a virtuous or vicious cycle. Those are powerful.

Happiness mantras

I can only change myself to improve my happiness.

Choose to be happy.

One of the best ways to make yourself happy is to make other people happy; one of the best ways to make other people happy is to make yourself happy - Gretchen Rubin

To be happy, you need to consider feeling good, feeling bad and feeling right, in an atmosphere of growth - Gretchen Rubin

Content

1. [Book] The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living by His Holiness The Dalai Lama and Dr Howard Cutler - Almost done. Find my notes here.

2. [Book] The Almanack Of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness by Eric Jorgenson - Rereading.

3. [Book] The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change your Life and Achieve Real Happiness by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga - Done. Find my notes here.

4. [Paper] World Happiness Report 2025. Find my notes here.

Happiness project resources

All other content, notes and resources are maintained on a public Notion board here. :)