Comments
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Rebecca Moise
February 7, 2009, 6:16 pm |
This was definitely worth reading. |
Marilyn
February 7, 2009, 8:19 pm |
Thanks for this special gift.
I plan to share it.
Have a happy new year. |
Traudl
February 8, 2009, 5:19 am |
This is what feels right to me, and what I have observed, too. I am curious to learn how you can teach it systematically. I plan to translate the article into German and post it on my website, if this is ok with the author. |
Kathy
February 8, 2009, 9:40 am |
What an uplifting message amidst these anxious times. Like daily bread, SOAP can so contribute to well-being. I was especially struck by Bill's African Violet story: the idea of finding happiness through our own strengths and talents is so powerful, but often overlooked if we're preoccupied with the weeding. And I liked, too, the idea of working from the future to bring us through the present. It's not just the ideas that Bill gives us, but it's the stories that take us there. He reminds me of how compelling story can be in introducing possibilites for change.
Thanks again. |
Corry
February 9, 2009, 1:58 am |
Really appreciated the affirmation that my mocassins are planted on "a path' that brings positive change and ultimate happiness. As my mentor, the late Dr Elisabeth Kubler Ross used to say, in response to creating something healing for others from our own pain, "My dear, you never know how many lives you touch." Thanks for touching mine, Bill, and I'm a sucker for great stories... |
Aranka
February 9, 2009, 8:18 am |
Wonderful and instantly believable.
Especially in that it shows an actual path to start from.
Having something to give others everyone can find in themselves somewhere.
Appreciate having received this and will definitely pass it on. |
Betsy
February 9, 2009, 11:21 am |
I am grateful for this report because several of his points hit the bullseye for me. He made comments that made me sigh in relief, "Ah, yes, that's a thought I've been looking for to help me over this hump of desperation!" Thank you. |
Rick Bianchi
February 9, 2009, 4:05 pm |
GREAT REPORT.I WAS HAPPY TO READ IT. |
Dianna RN
February 9, 2009, 6:20 pm |
I loved it.... it was as if Bill was sitting with me telling his stories and sharing his wisdom. |
Judith V.
February 10, 2009, 4:59 am |
Excellent. Thank you. |
Holly Starkman, Ph.D., LCSW
February 10, 2009, 7:07 am |
Thank you for providing a wide range of contemporary thinking in the areas of psychology and psychotherapy. I am very appreciative of this service and look forward to continued reading of creative and thought provoking clinical models/approaches. |
Frances
February 10, 2009, 8:26 am |
Thanks so much for a great, uplifting report. Amen to all the other comments. |
Don And Patricia Morgan
February 10, 2009, 9:14 am |
O'Hanlon's "Happiness" update hits the nail on the head. He writes in an easy to understand style that works for non-professionals and professionals alike. We are preping for a presentation on resilience, and the SOAP model will help us clean up our delivery. |
Anita Demants
February 10, 2009, 9:36 am |
Nice review of the material presented in the December conference. Helps me remember! |
Ruth Buczynski, PhD
February 10, 2009, 11:23 am |
Hi Traudl, you have permission to translate the report into German. Hope you can do it. |
Corinna
February 10, 2009, 1:18 pm |
Appreciate having the opportunity to have read this report. I enjoyed the interweaving of techniques with the anecdotal experiences to express how the applications created positive impact on the individuals involved. Very inspiring....thank you. |
Myrle Storch
February 10, 2009, 10:23 pm |
Thank you so much. This report was so enlightening. I know it, but it's so good to hear it again. As I facilitate a Bereavement Group today, I used some of the principles described in this report. It was so helpful for people during the grieving process. At least I planted some seeds. Thank you again for this marvelous report. |
Lila
February 12, 2009, 2:37 pm |
Thanks so much for the report! It was excellent. I will be taking a course with you this year. The one I am interested is not happening till later in the year (NLP). But keep sending me updates. I love your programs and the Thursday night seminars have been great too. Thanks! |
Monica
February 12, 2009, 9:37 pm |
THANKS A LOT I RECEIVED IT AND PRINTED IT AND READ IT, BE SURE I WILL SHARE IT WITH WHOM MAY NEED IT, HAVE A BEAUTIFUL WEEKEND |
Irene Swope
February 13, 2009, 1:41 am |
The Science of Happiness is an outstanding report,which should be read by the world!
I will share this with friends who are searching for happiness in all the wrong places!
My only objection is the horrible experiments with dogs. I wonder if those poor dogs were destroyed after the experiments.
I think of all my dogs who have been my best friends and can't imagine keeping them in cages with electric shock . |
Wanda Stayton
February 13, 2009, 10:08 am |
I appreciated the information from the research, especially noting that once a week appreciation/gratitude lists work so well. The story from the interview with Elspeth McAdam is inspirational and I like the new (to me) term "future mindedness". This is a little book with big application. |
Linda
February 14, 2009, 5:19 pm |
Will use this SOAP approach with some of the kids I counsel. I already have them doing the 3 good things of the day and why. People sometimes have to search for the good in the day. This may help it come to the foreground much more readily...all about habits. Thanks Bill. |
Dominic Burke PhD Australia
February 18, 2009, 1:28 am |
The title indicates that such a small booklet presents the science of happiness and I approached it with some scepticism. I very much enjoyed it and read it a second time.
The nature of happiness has been a matter of much study throughout the centuries and perhaps the more one focuses on the search for happiness the more elusive is that state.
Plato and Aristotle asked how a human being should live, what makes a life fully human, and their answer was eudaimonia. For a long time the word was translated as “happiness” but a much better translation is “flourishing.” So the question is: what constitutes a flourishing human life, a complete and fulfilling life? Activities one performed just because they are good in themselves, such as truthfulness, acting virtuously and social justice, were also good for oneself and promoted flourishing. I suggest that the experience of happiness is the felt quality of a flourishing life and O’Halloran’s summary of the elements for flourishing is excellent. For me it is cultivating the feelings of appreciation and gratitude that give life to the other three and, in this, I have learned much from the HeartMath research and practice. |
Catriona Fox
February 19, 2009, 7:13 am |
Wonderful - there's always something one can do ie find the African Violet. I loved the metaphors - Dead Sea and Sea of Galilee will remain with me for a long time. Thank you. |
Christine Bair, PhD, ThD
February 19, 2009, 11:07 am |
Bill does an excellent job of providing a quick overview (with touching anecdotes that connect emotionally) with the history of Positive Psychology. All too slowly the medical and psychological communities are becoming aware of this essential shift in focus. It's recognized that what we reinforce strengthens and continues; so focusing on depression, abuse, etc. retraumatises the patient and reinforces the negative reality. We also know that perceptions are our reality, and so focusing on our strengths and resilience fortifies them. Beyond the psychological improvement, physical health improves as well. The basic SOAP model (familiar to all clinicians) is easy to remember and a short summary of the spiritual teachings of all the worlds religions. The emerging "Sacred Science" will hopefully soon reintegrate all aspects of human living into a flourishing whole (abundant life). I would add Heart Rhythm Meditation (@Institute for Applied Meditation.com)as an easy to learn and useful tool in helping others to shift from their head to their heart and reconnect with their dreams and life vision. |
Judith Rivera Rosso, Italy
February 23, 2009, 1:22 pm |
Thank you for both the audio and "The Science of Happiness". Bill O'Hanlon is a great and gentle teacher. I plan to incorporate at least two, maybe more, of his "lessons" into my work as an EFT Counselor here in Italy. I especially love his examples of working from the future to the present as well as the African violet story. I have one client, in particular, with multiple sclerosis and serious depression; although he does not know it at the moment, our next session will be a triple-header of EFT, Bill O'Hanlon and African violets. Grazie!! |
Jennifer
February 24, 2009, 9:05 am |
Thanks, Bill. You are generous! |
Frida
February 24, 2009, 5:44 pm |
Excellent. i enjoyed a lot reading it. Thanks |
Barb Ulmer
February 24, 2009, 5:49 pm |
I love reading anything Bill writes, and this is no exception. I passed it along to a friend, just to add to her spiritual journey. Bill is so generous with his wisdom, knowledge and wit; he lives that of which he writes. |
Tara
February 24, 2009, 8:35 pm |
any positive image is helpful--the African violet story was a great reminder...sometimes different images are helpful for different people, I'll go with my gut as to which one to offer |
Nathael From France
February 25, 2009, 3:58 am |
Thank you to You and Bill. It is a pleasure to read him as he speaks to me. I remember his humour, his kindness, his presence (?) and knoledge I would like to get a french translation to not loose many details...I just learn english langage with a nice Danish girlfriend 35 years ago! It serves me today... I appreciate your generosity i do same in my life just be able to give free. You are generous Bill and human thank you. |
Kirsten
February 25, 2009, 12:25 pm |
This is the mail i sent to Bill last night.
Dear Bill,
thank you for the free download on Happiness, i really appreciate your ways of giving valuable help, and your time and support. This time though i am disturbed and sad about what i read in happiness research about the dog experiments.
There are all sorts of cruel experiments that are then afterwards misinterpreted, this one is really exquisitely cruel and dumb, full of ignorance.The researcher forgot to learn about dogs. They are pack animals ( wolves, still) , and they will do anything to reach their pack again, if there is the leader of the pack he probably is the one who does not give up at all, which only means that he is even more stressed out than the others, and totally desperate.The ones that keep on trying are even more stressed than the others, or leaders trying to protect their pack.No happiness here.
If you look at a panting dog, wagging its tail, do you think it is happy ? maybe yes, and igt also is in many cases stressed and has no other way to express that, which humans interpret as smiling and happy, because we only have ourselves in mind and draw conclusions from there. In most of those cases what you see is not what you think it is. How do i know ? I am a dog -listener, and that is a book that maybe you could be interested in, too, even if it is not totally in your line, but it is an example of how we can learn to overcome old , long cherished beliefs, if we have an open mind. Jan Fennell is the author, and her website is : www.janfennellthedoglistener.com The book has the same name : The DogListener and it is wonderful to read. The work Jan does is based on Monty Roberts work with horses, all about willing cooperation, which means learn what the fellow creature is telling us non-verbally and always non-violently, until it has no other choice.
So i do not know what all this means to you, but having listened to you i know that you always want to learn, and part of my mission is to make a normal dogs life just that : a dogs life. Would you like to tell me what you think ? I am in bed with the flu, but this was so important to me and i cried a lot over that experiment, unfortunately could not finish reading the paper.
Sending you warmth and happiness from my dog Momo , and myself ! Kirsten Hinrichsen |
J. Smylie, PhD, CCht, CBT, EFT
February 25, 2009, 2:40 pm |
Dear Bill,
Thank you for the inspiring download of Happiness. The content is clear and really helpful. Being a dog lover, I was a little horrified by the dog experiment(!) but I could see that through depression most animals and people give up. It is a little challenging to find the key to getting someone who feels depressed and is totally inward focused to connect and focus outside him/herself again... but the african violets was a good example.
I appreciated your work and the hopefulness offered to those whose comfort zone has not yet been happiness. |
Luis
February 25, 2009, 3:50 pm |
Thanks, for the information, is excellent to know this for my own life, and the lifes of my patients |
James Nelson, MNZAC
February 25, 2009, 4:35 pm |
Great article Bill - already having an impact on my personal life and my professional life as a therapist. Ah, the power of narratives! |
Michelle
February 25, 2009, 4:35 pm |
Bill O'Hanlon has always been one of my favorite leaders in the field of mental health and spirituality. This tool is OUTSTANDING! I have already begun to share it with friends and clients. Bill is often referenced in my work--this is just another GREAT resource to share. Beautiful work! Thanks for sharing all you do with us.....and keep us in line with what is important and meaningful.... |
Patricia Moore LCSW
February 25, 2009, 6:53 pm |
I was at a live seminar in 2004 where Bill gave this message. It is so wonderful, and I have utilized it in practice ever since I participated in the seminar. I love everything Bill thinks, says and publishes. I find it works wonders with my clients, and is the only way to go. We know they always carry the past around with them in their heads and maladaptive defense mechanisms, so the only way to go is forward and out of the quicksand. Thanks so much for disseminating this for free!!!!!!! I sent it to 5 of my friends who are also therapists. |
Sean
February 25, 2009, 9:47 pm |
The report was first class, but I also have a question: there was supposed to be a free audio report when we recommended it to a colleague, but I have yet to receive it - any comment? |
Ruth Buczynski, PhD
February 26, 2009, 1:34 pm |
Hi Sean, thanks for recommending the report to your colleagues. If you put their names and email addresses in the form that was there and hit submit, the next page that you got contained the link to the audio. But don't worry, we also followed up in an email with the link. Please check back in your emails to the day you put them in. |
Barbara
February 26, 2009, 2:35 pm |
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Barbara
February 26, 2009, 2:37 pm |
This was so refreshing and inspiring. Great practical info. with immediate applicablity. Thanks for making it available. |
Sabine
February 27, 2009, 11:57 am |
Yes thanks Ruth,
I got the report yesterday, and I had to wolf it down one piece (do you say so in English?).
Bill has a very special way to come to a point.
Thanks so much!
Greetings from Germany
from Sabine |
Nancy
February 28, 2009, 6:42 am |
Clear, no-nonsense, very useful report. Thank you! |
Jean
February 28, 2009, 2:41 pm |
Thanks for the great information - this is science at its best! Will be absorbing and sharing with other "scientists". Thanks for your ever positive valence in a world that needs courage and inspiration for change. |
Phil
February 28, 2009, 8:14 pm |
This is good stuff! It continues a theme Bill has been writing and speaking about for some time. I have used some of the principles he offers, with good results. Thanks again! |
Randy Webb
March 1, 2009, 11:31 am |
I get reminded of my own sense of mission when I read and hear presentations like this one. I continue to feel myself become a more empowered person (and healer) being in contact with these ideas I first encountered in Erickson Foundation trainings and with Martin Seligman. Thank You! |
Lynda
March 4, 2009, 10:28 pm |
Thanks for this, it's beautiful. It sounds exactly like what happens in Alcoholics Anonymous to me! |
Adele
March 9, 2009, 3:35 pm |
I love the concept of helping clients to heal themselves; they become empowered. Thank you for these positive principles for change!!! |
Cameron
March 11, 2009, 6:24 am |
Thankyou for this report. Bill has such a knack of engaging his reader with concepts that are both simple and profound. The stories are memorable as is the acronym SOAP. The principles and research can be applied both to clinical practise and to my personal life.
These ideas can profoundly influence lives and I for one, will share them with others. |
Mary-anne
March 11, 2009, 11:12 pm |
What a gift! Thank you for this wonderful, warm and well thought out article. I know that this will be very useful both for personal and professional use. I look forward to sharing this with colleagues and clients alike. I hope to have the opportunity to connect with similar articles and resources in the future. |
Fran
April 5, 2009, 1:14 pm |
It was enlightening. Thank you. I decided to do more volunteering and less work for pay. It changed my life and has helped me make changes along the way. |
Barry
April 6, 2009, 6:32 pm |
My grandmother taught me from an early age to "always count your blessings", she still is the best therapist I have ever had. Lucky for me I have three young sons and a beautiful wife to share my ambitions with. Having volunteered and created things for people out of love, I feel like I now want to devote my life to giving. I just have to work out how the mortgage gets paid and I'm made for life : ) |
Lyndon Medina
April 12, 2009, 7:53 am |
The book was a fantastic read and very inspirational...
I love the story of african violets, mitzvah therapy and the
SOAP of happiness....
Thank you for the gift... |
Quizical Therapist
May 14, 2009, 7:43 pm |
Are you real. These sound not real. |
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