Happiness Course Booms during COVID-19

With a third of the global population living under lockdown, many are turning to science for the answers on how to be happy in these difficult times.

By the evening of 26 March, 1.3 million people were enrolled in a Yale University online course entitled: The Science of Well Being.

Studying happiness may not be the first field that pops into your head when you think of science, but there's undeniable public interest - especially since Covid-19 began (continues).

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I thought it worth to also include the below excerpt. Maybe some of us would benefit from such tips. And, Dr. Oliver, feel free to share--perhaps you already have--any nuggets from your Philosophy of Happiness course. I do wonder if public opinion favors philosophy over science--not to say the two are opposed, of course--when it comes to the subject of happiness?

Tips for being happier now

Neuroscientist Emiliana Simon-Thomas co-teaches an edX course on the science of happiness which has been taken by over half a million students globally - here are her top three tips:

1. Mindfulness

"Just taking five minutes to notice the sensation in your body, the sensations around you...really grounding in the moment you're in, trying not to surrender to the constant looking forward and backward."

2. Connect with others

"Spending time deliberately talking with others about your experience, their experience, and if you can, what's going well. It's impossible not to feel worried, but can you ask someone - what did you enjoy today? Was it the hot water in your shower? A particularly interesting conversation or some video you watched that was really moving or inspiring?"

3. Practise gratitude

"Deliberately writing down on a given day what has gone well and who played a hand in that. Sometimes it's not your spouse or your neighbor but someone you don't know, who might have harvested the fruit that you eat. Really delving into our sense of common humanity in this time is important and a way to recognise [our] potential to overcome this challenge as a community."