After sending a book I read to a good friend, he recommended a book back to me – he didn’t give me his copy of it as he said he rereads it every once in a while to “remind” himself. With a review like that, I promptly bought my own copy of the book and put it on my bookshelf. And there it sat, literally for years, until I recently read it. Long overdue, I wish I had read it sooner.

What was the book? What Happy People Know by Dan Baker. At the time of writing the book, Baker was the Founder and Director of the Life Enhancement Program at Canyon Ranch. If you’re unfamiliar with Canyon Ranch, it’s a wicked expensive resort yet worth every penny (so I have heard). As part of the overall resort, he worked with guests who were escaping from the day-to-day of life and trying to reset before reentry to the real world... which is my condensed assessment, not his words. As a result of his experiences there and throughout his career, he shares in this book what he has learned about the aptly titled book.

As I read through Baker’s stories, which in themselves were takeaways for me, I also had several specific takeaways.

Adaptation level theory – This theory states that once we become accustomed to any form of pleasure, it no longer has the power to make us happy. From too much sugar to too much money to too much vacation (if there’s such a thing), too much of anything can eventually be a bad thing.

We have 2 brains? – When talking about love, the association is always with the heart. If you asked people about this, they would say it’s emotional, however there is research this is actually physical and your heart communicates with your brain in a pairing called the heart-brain. This unity can be both beneficial and detrimental to your health depending on how your heart feels.

A bad case of the VERBs – Baker stated a patient had a case of victimization, entitlement, rescue and blame, or VERB. This resonated with me as I know I have had a case or 2 (at least) myself over the years and likely you reading this has as well. It’s something he says we do to ourselves and something we need to stop doing.

Sometimes we need help – Getting our stuff together is easy for some but not others. Even for those who mostly can get their stuff together, on occasion we may need help from others. Whether a loved one or a friend or a therapist, help is a good thing. It’s also ok if you observe someone having a challenge with their stuff to offer your help.

What Happy People Know is a good read and despite some sad stories, it is a very positive and encouraging read. I now know why my friend rereads is on a regular basis and I agree with him doing so. No matter your mood or outlook, this is a book that will get you thinking about attitude in a positive way. Where I may reread this in the future, for now I am giving away my copy to my nephew; he has been reading a wide variety of topics including many self-help books. I hope he and anyone else who reads it enjoys is as much as I did. And my friend too.

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This is from The Hot Iron, a journal on business and technology by Mike Maddaloni.

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