I am a Buddhist and I knew I needed some help in putting out the fire inside me. I was getting really stressed at work and it seemed I was getting stuck in a vortex of negativity. I wanted to learn ways to be truly happy and accepting of everything around me.

This book taught me how to convert every negative feeling/experience into a positive and how to avoid anything that brings me negativity. Through practice you can get really good at this and everyone around you can't help but be positive too.

I've learned the people who wait for others to be nice to them first, are the ones that seem most guarded and unapproachable. Be outwardly nice before waiting to see if someone is nice to you first. This approach will almost always attract kindness from others.

All humans are connected through all the tangible things we take for granted. The cotton shirt you're wearing originated from a field/farm, plucked by an operator, sewn by someone else, packaged by someone else, and sold by someone else. This applies to your car, your carpet, your roof...all human beings help each other in a transparent fashion.

Without material things, we are all people, we are all the same. Material things only give you a temporary happiness...this is not true happiness, it fades, it's forgotten.

The ability to have true compassion is key. Not sympathy, but empathy. Genuinely be compassionate towards everybody.


I'm actually not done with the book, but it's a very enjoyable read and it's already had a very positive impact on me all-around. There's so much I've learned from The Art of Happiness and 90% of the material I've been able to put to practice in my day to day struggles.