Short Cuts to Happiness: Life-Changing Lessons from My Barber

English poet John Donne pointed out, “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” We want to, often need to, join in, belong. When we share something with another—a cup of coffee, our time, our advice, our ear—it means that we’re in it together. We remind those we’re with, as well as ourselves,

The Nobel Prize–winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman demonstrated in research that, compared to other activities, parents do not generally enjoy spending time with their children. One of the reasons for this is that parents are distracted by other activities or people, and when their attention is divided they find the experience strenuous and drain

Aristotle pointed out that friendship and contemplation are the two pillars of a happy life. We are social animals and we are rational animals—we need friends, and we need to learn. Aristotle was so convinced of this truth that he founded a school of philosophy at the Lyceum, a place where people could cultivate friendships and learn new things at

Psychology follows physiology; the external and the internal are intimately related.

“The best way to gain trust is to give trust.”

Most parents believe, as I did for many years, that telling children that they are smart or beautiful or talented is a good thing. They think it will enhance their children’s self-esteem, success, and happiness. It turns out, though, that such praise hurts our kids more than it helps them.

“Moving fast is important, but so is knowing when to sit on the fence and wait.” He then added, “It’s not always easy to wait, and there is often a cost to it, but it’s necessary.”

We should learn to pick our battles better—sometimes it’s appropriate and right to get angry or upset, but sometimes, usually in fact, it’s just not worth it.”

Life changes, and when life changes the rules change, and when the rules change we need to write a new rule book. Today, be mindful: Maybe your life has changed, and only you haven’t?