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When we help others, pleasure zones in our brain are activated. That is why in difficult times it is worth betting on human communication.
There are great things to say about what happens to a country when it devotes itself solely to increasing its GDP: “Our gross domestic product … monetizes air pollution, cigarette ads, ambulance sirens on highways. It counts the heavy-duty locks we put on our doors and the construction of prisons for those who break those locks… It counts nuclear warheads and police armored cars to quell street protests. But gross domestic product does not measure the health of our children, nor the quality of their education, nor the joy of their games. It does not include the beauty of our poetry, nor the strength of marriage, nor the soundness of public debate, nor the decency of politicians. It does not measure our humor, or our courage, or our wisdom, or our desire to learn new things, or our ability to empathize, or our love for our country. In short, it measures everything except what is worth living for.” Robert Kennedy said this during the 1968 US presidential election campaign, a few months before he was assassinated.
Today, a group of Anglo-Saxon economists, and in France the philosopher and economist Patrick Vivret, are fighting to ensure that the success of a country is measured by the well-being of its citizens, and not by the production of weapons and the construction of prisons. Researching what really makes people happy, they came to the exact conclusions: these are everyday activities that are not related to consumption and can do without the material conditions that the economic crisis threatens. Each of us should act in such a way that there will be more such activities in his life, and our governments should help us in this.
1. Connect with other people
Invest in human relationships – with your family members, with friends, with work colleagues, with neighbors. These relationships will enrich your life and support you more every day.
2. Be active
Walk. Ride your bike. Play football. Dig in the garden. Dance. Find a way to get your body moving that you enjoy and that amuses you. When the body works, the mood rises.
3. Focus on the present moment
Be curious. Notice everything beautiful and unusual. Enjoy the moment you live, whether it’s breakfast with a friend or walking to work. Focus on your bodily sensations, emotions, thoughts. Notice what is most important to you today.
4. Never stop learning. Try something new
Take up singing, dancing, cooking, or painting. Set a high bar for yourself that you would like to overcome, and then overcome it.
5. Give yourself to others
Do something to help a friend or stranger. Smile on the subway. Become a volunteer in a community organization.
See your future as inextricably linked to the future of those around you. When you do someone a favor, it activates deep areas of the brain that are responsible for pleasure. It’s amazing that it took the global economic crisis to put these simple, eternal values of ours in the public debate. But isn’t the Chinese character for crisis made up of the signs for “danger” and “opportunity”?
* David Servan-Schreiber, founder and director of the Medical Center (Center for Complementary Medicine) at the University of Pittsburgh (USA), author of many books, including The Body Loves the Truth (Ripol Classic, 2014).