The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work
Flip success on its head and train your brain to win
About This Book
Most of us were taught to chase success first and expect happiness later. This flips the script. You’ll learn how positive emotion fuels focus, creativity, resilience, and results—at school, at work, and at home. Through vivid science-backed ideas like the Broaden-and-Build effect, the Zorro Circle, the Positive Tetris Effect, and habit design with the 20‑Second Rule, you’ll rewire how you think, lead, and live. Expect practical tools, not slogans: tiny mood primers that boost performance, mindsets that turn setbacks into growth, and rituals that make the right behaviors automatic. The journey is clear, doable, and surprisingly fun.About the Author
Shawn Achor is a leading researcher and teacher of positive psychology in education and business. He has trained leaders in more than 40 countries, ran one of the largest studies on happiness among high-achieving students, and advised global organizations navigating crisis and change. Known for making science practical, he blends rigorous research with clear step-by-step tools people can use the same day. His focus: helping individuals and teams turn happiness into a measurable competitive edge through mindset, habit design, and social connection.
Biggest Takeaway
• Perform better under pressure by using quick mood “primers” that sharpen thinking and speed problem-solving. • Build resilient mindsets that bounce forward after setbacks using counterfactuals and the ABCD method. • Regain a sense of control with small, winnable goals that compound into big outcomes. • Replace willpower battles with smart habit design so good actions become automatic. • Train your attention to scan for opportunities, not only threats, to increase optimism, grit, and creativity. • Strengthen relationships that protect you from stress and multiply results across your team. • Lead with positive contagion and balanced feedback to raise collective performance.
Key Insights from This Book
Explore the most important ideas and learn how to apply them in your life.
Stop waiting to be happy and use joy to get better results
Change your fulcrum to move more than your effort ever could
Train your brain to spot opportunities, not just threats, every day
Turn setbacks into springboards by changing the story you tell
Shrink the battlefield and win control back with small circles
Make good habits easy to start and bad habits hard to start
Invest in people first to build resilience, health, and results
Make positivity contagious and use balanced feedback to lift teams
Want More Actionable Insights?
Get the Mentorist app and turn knowledge from hundreds of books into daily actions.