This Week’s Book Review: “Stumbling on Happiness” by Daniel Gilbert. This book is a great insight on the psychology of happiness, not a self-help book. The biggest idea for me is the idea that imagination of the future is more exaggerated in our minds and less likely to happen. Also, this book reassures I’m not unique, and many of the ideas and concepts expressed here apply to me. I’m being doped by my own mind’s anticipatory engine, and that’s affecting my emotions, especially “happiness.” This book really delves into this concept and how intangible it really is. If you love these pop-psychology books, this one is really easy to understand as well. If you also get a chance to watch Gilbert’s TED talk, it’s a great compliment to the book.
Updates 2015-02-09
Despite being a book about happiness, this isn’t a self-help book about how to become happy. It’s actually Dr. Gilbert’s research into perception and cognitive biases and how our imagination deceives us. The book is profound with it’s findings, but I didn’t think it has much value in immediate changes. You have to think about it for a while and be aware of how our mind deceives us. Obligatory TED Talk.