通向快樂之路
A Wonder Drug
一種神奇的藥
Ina taxicab on a rainy day in New York City, Gretchen Rubin, 41, suddenlyasked herself what she wanted most in life. "I realized I wanted to behappy," she recalls. "It was a lightning-bolt moment because I'd nevereven thought about it before."
在一個雨天紐約的一輛出租車上，突然想到問自己這一生最想要的是什么，“我才意識到自己想要快樂”，41歲的格雷琴·羅賓（Gretchen Rubin）女士回憶道，“就那么突然一個靈光，醒悟了，之前我甚至從來沒有考慮過這個問題。”
Acouple of years ago, this wife, mother and former lawyer for JusticeSandra Day O'Connor launched a full-time happiness project to test-drivetraditional and newly minted approaches toward her life goal. She kept adaily gratitude journal, read a poem every day and had regular datenights with her husband, among other strategies. Now she swears she'scheerier.
幾年前，這位為人妻母、擔任過大法官桑德拉·戴·奧康納（Sandra Day O'Connor）的律師的女性開始了一項全天快樂計劃，將傳統(tǒng)的和新興的方法結合試用以達到她的人生目標。她的一系列行動計劃包括，堅持每天寫感恩日記，每天讀首詩，和丈夫晚上定期的約會等等。她很肯定地說，現(xiàn)在比以前快樂了。
Come on, get happy!
為抓住幸福，加油！
Everyoneseems to be jumping on the get-happier bandwagon. Happiness is makingheadlines, selling books, inspiring scientific studies and spawninglaughter clubs and joyology workshops. The reason? As the burgeoningfield of positive psychology has shown, happy people thrive. They'remore creative and productive, earn more money, attract more friends,enjoy better marriages, stay healthier and even outlive their grumpierpeers.
似乎每個人都在努力搭上“變得快樂點”這趟列車。幸福成了大標題、暢銷書，激起了科學研究，產(chǎn)生了微笑俱樂部和快樂學研討會。為什么會這樣？正如快速發(fā)展的積極心理學所顯示的快樂的人會發(fā)展的更好。他們會更積極，更多產(chǎn)，掙的錢更多，有更多的朋友，享有更好的婚姻關系，更好的健康狀況甚至比壞脾氣的同齡人活得更久。
"Imaginea drug that causes you to live eight or nine years longer, make $15,000more a year, be less likely to get divorced," says Martin Seligman,PhD, who started the positive psychology movement almost a decade ago."Happiness seems to be that drug."
將近10年前發(fā)起了這項積極心理運動的馬丁·塞里格曼博士說，“想象一下，有種藥可以讓你多活八九年，每年多掙15,000美元，降低離婚可能性。而快樂可能就是這種藥。”
Butothers wonder, Is this just one more thing we feel pressured to achievein our overscheduled, overmeasured lives? How could there be one pathto happiness for all people? And if we aren't feeling blissful, are wefailures at happiness? Some skeptics dismiss "happichondria" as thelatest feel-good fad. "The notion that behavior modification can bringabout true happiness is as bogus as can be," says psychiatrist CharlesGoodstein, MD, of New York University.
但也有人會問，這會不會是原本已經(jīng)超負荷的日程安排和過度克制的生活中的又一件給我們壓力的事呢？怎么可能有一條適合所有人的快樂通路？如果無法體會幸福的感覺，我們就與快樂無緣了嗎？有些懷疑論者把“幸福感”看作最新的自我感覺良好的風尚而不屑一顧。紐約大學的精神病學家查爾斯·古德斯坦（Charles Goodstein）博士稱，“這種認為行為矯正可以帶來真正快樂的觀念是不確切的。”
Buthappiness researchers, backed by thousands of studies, say happiness ismeasurable and buildable. If you're willing to take a chance on theupside of life and shoot for your bliss, in spite of the naysayers,here's help laying the groundwork.
但是研究快樂的人員基于大量的研究稱，快樂是可衡量的，也是可擁有的。如果你想嘗試進入生活的良性循環(huán)，爭取幸福，盡管有人不認同，這里還是有些助你打基礎的工作可以做的。
Genetics,as research on 4,000 sets of twins has demonstrated, accounts for about50 percent of your happiness quotient. But even if you inherited thefamily frown instead of joy genes, you're not fated to a life of gloom.Just don't pin your hopes on advantages like health, wealth, educationand good looks -- those bring only somewhat greater happiness than whatthose who are less blessed feel. Unless you're extremely poor or gravelyill, life circumstances account for only about 10 percent of happiness.The other 40 percent depends on what you do to make yourself happy.
據(jù)對4,000對雙胞胎的研究表明，基因因素占到了快樂指數(shù)構成的50%。但即使你錯失家庭的快樂基因而遺傳了負面情緒的基因，也不等于你就注定會一輩子憂郁。不要完全依賴于健康、財富、學歷和外表方面的優(yōu)勢——這些只能帶來比那些在這幾方面處于劣勢的人多一點點的快樂。除非你極其貧窮或患重病，否則生活環(huán)境只占到你快樂指數(shù)的約10%。另40%取決于你為爭取快樂做了哪些努力。
That'sthe tricky part. Most of us assume that external things -- a biggerhouse, a better job, a winning lottery ticket -- will brighten ourlives. While they do bring temporary delight, the thrill invariablyfades. "After 18 years of studying happiness, I fell into the same trapas everyone else," says psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky, PhD, author ofThe How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life YouWant. "I was so excited to get a new car, a hybrid I'd wanted for a longtime, but within two months, driving it became routine. Happiness islike weight loss. We all know how to take off a few pounds; the trick ismaintaining it."
這才是關鍵的部分。大多數(shù)人認為外部的因素——大點的房子，較好的工作，中獎的彩票——會給我們的生活增色。然而這些只能給我們暫時的快樂，它們終將褪色。心理學家桑亞·柳博米爾斯基（Sonja Lyubomirsky）博士說，“在研究了快樂18年后，我也和別人一樣陷入了同一個困境”，她曾著有《如何獲得快樂：獲得你向往生活的科學方法》。“當我拿到期盼已久的雙動力汽車時，真的興奮不已，可不到兩個月，開著它成了再平常不過的事。快樂就像減肥，我們都知道怎樣能夠減掉幾磅肉，可關鍵在于維持。
Intheir research, Lyubomirsky and her colleagues found that the key toenduring joy is to look beyond fleeting pleasures, to the other pillarsof what Seligman calls authentic happiness: engagement with family, workor a passionate pursuit, and finding meaning from some higher purpose."Different methods are a better fit for different people," Lyubomirskyexplains. "Keeping a daily gratitude journal seems hokey to some people,but writing a letter of gratitude may be very meaningful." Timing and"doses" also matter. Performing five acts of kindness on one day, shefound, yielded a significant increase in well-being, while acts ofkindness on different days didn't. "To sustain happiness," sheemphasizes, "you have to make the effort and commitment every day forthe rest of your life.
柳博米爾斯基（Lyubomirsky）和她的團隊在研究中發(fā)現(xiàn)持久快樂的關鍵在于超越短暫的快樂，去關注快樂的核心，塞利格曼(Seligman)將之稱為真正的快樂：和家人的約會，工作或者某個熱切的追求，以及從更高的目標中尋找某種意義。“不同的人適合不同的方法，”柳博米爾斯基解釋說，“對有些人來說每天寫感恩日記有點虛情假意，寫感恩信更實在。”時機和“劑量”也很重要。她發(fā)現(xiàn)一天做5件善意的事，會顯著增加快樂，而分散不在一天內(nèi)做，則沒有這種效果。她強調(diào)，“要維持快樂，你余生的每一天都要努力奉獻。”
Thelong run generally brings greater contentment, according to studiesthat chart the trajectory of happiness over a life span. After even themost joyous childhood, happiness typically declines in the teens throughthe early 20s, but, believe it or not, increases as we age. "Youngpeople tend to pay more attention to the bad," explainsneuropsychologist Stacey Wood, PhD, of Scripps College. "As we getolder, we learn to regulate and overcome this reaction."
根據(jù)對整個生命過程的幸福軌跡圖譜的研究，這樣的長期行為通常會帶來更大的滿足感。在人生的頭20年中，度過即便是最快樂的童年后，十幾歲時，快樂會明顯的減少。但，信不信由你，隨著我們逐漸變老，快樂又會逐漸增加。“年輕人總是更關注事情不好的方面，”斯克里普斯學院（Scripps College）的神經(jīng)心理學家斯特西·伍德（Stacey Wood）博士解釋說，“隨著年齡漸長，我們學會了控制和克服這種反應。”
Infact, some experts say, happiness seems to rise even into old age."Older adults don't react as intensely to life events, and they reportfewer negative emotions and more positive ones," says Wood.
事實上，有些專家認為，即使是年事已高的人，幸福感還會增加。“老年人不會對生活中的事件作強烈的反應，他們較少傳播消極情緒，而更傾向于傳播積極的情緒，”伍德博士說。
Noteveryone agrees. Nora Ephron, author of I Feel Bad About My Neck, saysthat, yes, after a certain age you tend to factor the realization thatlife is short into your decisions. "And you try to eliminate people andthings (like bad meals) that don't make you happy," she says. "But ofcourse, all this is overlaid by a certain sadness because this is thetime when people start to get sick, and that absolutely cuts into thehappiness quotient."
可并不是所有人都同意這一觀點?！段铱蓱z的脖子》（I Feel Bad About My Neck)一書的作者諾拉·依弗朗(Nora Ephron)說，“的確，到一定年齡后你會意識到生命已經(jīng)短到影響你的決定。你會試著忽略那些讓你不快的人和事（比如不如意的飲食），然而，所有這些都被某種悲傷籠罩著，因為這時人們往往開始患上各種疾病，這一狀況無疑會降低他們的快樂指數(shù)。”
Dare to Laugh Out Loud
勇敢大聲笑出來
Regardlessof your age or temperament, you can feel happier right this minute,claims psychologist Will Fleeson, PhD, of Wake Forest University, whosays he has found a surefire strategy to boost the spirit: Do something,however small, that is energetic, adventurous, assertive or bold. Whenvolunteers recorded their feelings throughout the day, all felt happierwhen active and engaged, regardless of whether they were naturallyintroverted or extroverted.
忽略年齡和性格，你就能更好的享受此時此刻，維克森林大學（Wake Forest University）的心理專家威爾·弗雷森（Will Fleeson）博士說。他聲稱發(fā)現(xiàn)了提振情緒的絕好方法：做點事，無論有多小，可以是充滿活力的，大膽的，也可以是武斷的，魯莽的。無論受試者是主動的還是被動的，或者原本性格是內(nèi)向的還是外向的，當他們記錄下一整天的感受時，都感覺更快樂。
"Thebiggest surprise in this research was that you can change your behaviorand make yourself feel happier readily and easily," says Fleeson, whofound that almost any active behavior -- even singing or dancing to theradio -- has a positive effect on mood. "Laughing out loud is exactlythe kind of adventurous, bold action that makes you feel happier."
“這項研究中最令人吃驚的是：你可以管理自己的行為，容易地讓自己更快樂，”弗雷森說，他發(fā)現(xiàn)任何積極的行為——即使是跟著收音機里的音樂節(jié)奏唱歌跳舞——也會對情緒有積極影響。“大聲笑出來確實是一種讓你更快樂的大膽、勇敢的行為。”
Simplyputting on a happy face, as the classic song lyric advises, can make adifference. In experiments at Clark University, psychologist JamesLaird, PhD, hooked volunteers up to sham electrodes and instructed themto contract and relax specific facial muscles, so they were, in effect,smiling for no reason at all. With the corners of their mouths pulledup, most of the volunteers rated cartoons funnier than did thoseinstructed to pull their eyebrows together as if frowning.
就如經(jīng)典抒情歌曲唱的：面帶微笑，就會有改變。在克拉克大學（Clark University）的試驗中，詹姆斯·萊爾德（James Laird）博士將受試者連接于假電極之間，讓他們收縮、放松面部的某些肌肉，以做到能夠毫無緣由地微笑。相較于那些被要求皺眉的人，大部分嘴角上揚的受試者認為卡通片更有趣。
Inother studies, smiling individuals recalled happier memories than thosewith furled brows or neutral expressions. Whenever we smile, nerves andmuscles may transmit messages that turn on happiness centers in thebrain, Laird speculates. "The bottom line is that a smile doesn't costanything and may do you good." So why not grin?
其它研究還顯示，和皺著眉或不帶感情的表達相比，微笑的人回想的記憶更快樂。每當我們微笑時，神經(jīng)和肌肉就會傳遞信息使大腦的快樂中心興奮，萊爾德猜測說。“不管怎么說，微笑不需要任何成本，卻對你有好處。”那么，為什么不咧嘴微笑呢？
Still,not everyone is sold on the power of positive thinking. According toBowdoin College psychologist Barbara Held, PhD, for those with aglass-half-empty view of the world, all this happy talk can be downrightdepressing. In her book Stop Smiling, Start Kvetching, Held wages waragainst the "tyranny of the positive attitude," the put-on-a-happy-facemind-set, which she believes holds too much sway in American culture.Not everyone can strike a pose of sunny optimism in the face of life'smishaps, Held says, and not everyone should. "If you try to force peopleto cope in ways that don't fit their nature, it can do harm."
然而，并不是每個人都認同積極思考的影響力。據(jù)包登學院（Bowdoin College）的心理學專家芭芭拉·海德（Barbara Held）博士稱，對于那些傾向于看到半杯水空的那半部分杯子的人來說，所有關于快樂的談論無疑讓他們更加沮喪。在《想抱怨就抱怨，不要勉強微笑》（Stop Smiling, Start Kvetching）一書中，她向“積極態(tài)度的統(tǒng)攝”和面帶微笑的思想模式（她認為這一模式在美國文化中占據(jù)了過多的分量)宣戰(zhàn)了。海德認為，面對人生的意外時，并不是所有人都能表現(xiàn)得樂觀，也不是每個人都應該如此。“強迫人們以不適合他們本性的方式應對事情是有害的。”
Soif you're going through a rough patch, don't feel bad about feelingbad. "When someone's in pain over the loss of a job, the end of arelationship or the death of a loved one, telling them to be moreoptimistic and look on the bright side just adds insult to injury," Heldsays. The person now feels bad for not coping more effectively, on topof everything else. Instead, having the freedom to complain to a friend,what Held calls creative kvetching, can be cathartic. Her message: Thepath to contentment depends on finding the coping strategy that suitsyou best, even if that means expressing anger or sadness along the way.
所以，如果你正經(jīng)歷一次不如意，不要因為感覺不好而沮喪。海德說，“當有人因失去工作，結束了某段關系或深愛的人離世而痛苦時，告訴他們要積極一點，看看事情好的一面都無異于在其傷口上撒鹽。”現(xiàn)在人們因為不能有效應對挫折比其他任何事都要沮喪。相反，隨意向朋友抱怨，就如海德所說的創(chuàng)造性的抱怨，卻可以讓人發(fā)泄。她的觀點是：通往滿足的路有賴于尋找最適合你的應對策略，即使沿途要表達你的憤怒或悲傷。
Smile Power
微笑的力量
Whatevertheir disposition, Americans have plenty of reasons to smile, says WillWilkinson, a policy analyst at the Cato Institute, who recentlyreviewed social, economic and political perspectives on our nationalhappiness. "We have more wealth, health and comforts than 99.9 percentof the people who have ever lived on the planet, and we feel as good asanyone ever has," he says.
“無論天性如何，美國人總有很多理由微笑，”卡托研究所（the Cato Institute）的政策分析師威爾·威爾金森（Will Wilkinson）說道。他最近從社會、經(jīng)濟和政治角度回顧了國民幸福，總結說，“我們擁有的財富、健康和公共設施比世界上99.9%的人都要多，卻并沒有比別人感覺更快樂。”
GretchenRubin says her personal quest for happiness has infused her life withmeaning: "I realized that by working hard to keep a lighter tone, bytaking time to be silly, to laugh more, to sing every morning, I managedto bring about deeper changes in myself -- more loving and consideratefeelings and actions. That's why it's a duty to be happy. When I put inthe effort to take the steps that will make me happier, I'm far betterable to make other people happier too."
格雷琴·魯賓（Gretchen Rubin）說她在快樂方面的探索給她的生命注入了意義：“我意識到可以通過努力工作來保持較輕松的感覺，有時候傻氣一點，多笑一點，早晨唱唱歌，這樣做給我?guī)砹溯^深刻的變化——有更多仁愛和體諒的感受及行動。這就是我們?yōu)槭裁匆鞓?。當我努力做著那些可以讓我更快樂的事，也能夠更好地讓別人快樂。”
10 Ways to Turn That Frown Upside Down
10個顛覆愁眉的方法
1.Be less virtual, more 3-D. "If there's one thing that separates happypeople from ridiculously happy people, it's the quality of their socialrelationships," says psychologist Todd Kashdan of George MasonUniversity. If you sit at a computer all day, get up and indulge in somehuman contact instead. Even time with strangers ramps up your sense ofwell-being, says Kashdan. "You laugh much harder when you're with otherpeople in a theater than when you watch a movie at home."
1.少虛假，多真實。喬治梅森大學的心理學專家托德·卡什丹說，“如果有什么可以區(qū)分真快樂和假快樂的人，那就是他們社會關系的質(zhì)量。”如果你整天坐在電腦前，那就起身參加一些社交活動。即使是和陌生人在一起也會增加你的幸福感覺，卡什丹說道。“和別人在劇院要比你在家看電影難笑得出來得多。”
2.4, 6, 8 … who do we appreciate? Making a list of things you're gratefulfor may seem silly, but it's been proven to work. In fact, countingyour blessings may be the single most helpful thing you can do for yourhappiness quotient, say experts.
2.4,6,8，。。。。。。想想有哪些人我們應該感激？把你要感激的事列張單子看似很傻，但事實證明這確實有用。專家們認為，細數(shù)福分可能是對提升快樂指數(shù)唯一最有幫助的事。
3.Rack 'em up. Think of every positive experience during the day as abead on a string, and see how they add up. This simple exercise makesyou focus on even the smallest positive moments, like a fellow driverwaving you to go first at a four-way stop, or an e-mail from a friend ina spam-filled inbox.
3.積累正面的經(jīng)歷。想想每個有助益的經(jīng)歷，就像細繩上的小珠子，看著它們一個個竄起來。這一簡單的練習能讓你關注到那些哪怕是極微小的正面時刻，比如在四向停車場，并排的車司機示意你先行，或者是充斥著垃圾郵件的郵箱里看到一封朋友的來信。
4.Think memorable, not material. If you have to choose between, say, anew car and a family vacation, pack your bags. Even the sexiest sportscar becomes routine over time. But the memory of a good time withfriends and loved ones will last forever.
4.想想事物的紀念意義，不要過分注重物質(zhì)。如果你必須在兩個事物之間選擇，比如說，一輛新車和一次家庭旅行，那就背起你的行囊吧。即使是最炫的跑車，過段時間也會成為平常物。但一段和愛人、朋友一起的美好記憶卻可以永遠保鮮。
5.Go to the funny side. "Humor is like salt on meat," observespsychologist Martin Seligman, PhD. "It amplifies everything." Watchreruns of classic shows that never fail to make you laugh. Try to smileat the absurdities of life. And when you read the jokes in this issue,laugh out loud.
5.用幽默的眼光看事情。“幽默就像是菜里的鹽”心理學家馬丁·塞里格曼（Martin Seligman）博士說，“它可以闡述一切。”經(jīng)典的表演重播再多次都能讓你發(fā)笑。試著笑對生活的不如意。下次讀到這方面的笑話時，大聲笑出來吧。
6.Escape to your stress-free zone. Think of a place where you always feelcalm and happy. Then, when you're tense and miserable, call it upmentally, with as much detail as possible. Smell the suntan lotion. Feelthe sun. Hear the sea. Play this video in your mind when your spiritsslump.
6.逃離到無壓區(qū)。想想看有什么地方可以讓你感覺平靜和快樂的。當你緊張痛苦時，想想那里，盡可能詳細點。聞聞曬黑乳液的味道，感受一下陽光，傾聽一下大海的聲音。情緒低落時就想想這些。
7.See the glass as half full. Whenever possible, try to look at thebright side. You might be feeling like your life right now is one giantdownhill slope. But if you stop and assess it honestly, you'll see youactually have it pretty good. And if things truly are against you, seeNo. 8.
7.看看滿的那半杯水。盡可能地多看事情好的一面。也許你感覺自己的生活正處于下坡路，不妨停下來客觀地評價一下，你會發(fā)現(xiàn)其實生活還是挺好的。如果你確實處于困境，那就看看第8條。
8.Find your inner artist. Think back to when you had time for creativeexpression. Were you in a rock band? Did you write poetry? Did you lovetinkering with cars? Remember feeling so engaged that you lost track oftime? Why not pick up that Fender (or fender) again? Joyful expressioncan bring happiness.
8.發(fā)覺你的內(nèi)在藝術細胞。想想如果你有時間可以做些創(chuàng)造性的表達，你會是在某個搖滾樂隊嗎？你會寫詩嗎？還記得你因太忙而忽略的時間足跡嗎？為什么不重拾舊好？愉悅的表達能夠給你帶來快樂。
9.Do good. Acts of kindness, however small, deliver as much pleasure tothe giver as to the getter. For example, a real paper-and-pen letter,telling someone who's helped you how much it meant to you, is a surefirecheer-upper. So is giving time, money or both to a good cause.
9.做善事。友好的行為，無論其有多小，都能夠給接受者和給予者帶來快樂。比如，收到一封紙筆寫的信告訴你，你的幫助是多么重要時，絕對是件非常高興的事。那么就花些時間和金錢去做善事吧。
10.Seize the moment. Rather than waiting to celebrate a big event, why notdo it today? Bake a cake just because. Take someone out to lunch. Buypink nail polish.Have sex in the afternoon. Raise a toast to a good day.Go ahead, be happier.
10. 把握現(xiàn)在。 與其等著慶祝某件大事，為什么不現(xiàn)在開始呢?想烤塊蛋糕就烤塊，喊上誰出去吃午飯，買瓶粉色的指甲油，下午和愛人親熱一下，為某個好日子舉杯。來吧，讓自己快樂點。
