Accepting and adapting to hardship is essential to happiness and mental health, said Dr. Jonathan Biggane, chair of the Department of Management, in his new book, “Resiliently Happy: A Guide to Building Resilience and Finding Happiness,” recently released on Amazon.
Biggane described his book as a summary and popularization of over 50 years of research into the science of happiness and psychological resilience, including aspects of psychology, sociology, neurobiology, medicine and business. Citing both academic sources and first-person accounts of personal resilience, Biggane said facing painful circumstances with positivity and self-reliance can transform painful experiences into opportunities for personal growth and improved mental health.
“At some point in life, nearly everyone will face a traumatic experience,” Biggane said. “It’s not a question of if we’re going to face adversity, it’s when. Preparing yourself for life’s uncertainties and taking a resilient outlook significantly lowers your risk of burnout, depression, anxiety and other maladies. What’s more, in the process of becoming more resilient, you’ll naturally become happier.”
Biggane said the most surprising finding of happiness research is that external life changes, whether good or bad, have little effect on long-term happiness — which means most people have much greater abilities to recover from setbacks than they realize.
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