community Archives - Compassionate Women

The documentary A Small Good Thing is named after an award winning short story written by Raymond Carver. At the center of the story is a message of the healing power of community. In the same vein, the documentary centers around 6 people who have chosen to find happiness by focusing on family and community.

The problem with today’s world is that it’s so convenient and we have everything at our fingertips, but that doesn’t equate to happiness. You can’t be truly fulfilled if you don’t have to work for anything. And what are we doing with all that time freed up by so much convenience? Browsing social media and watching Netflix, mostly.

Collectively, we also believe that happiness = success = money. We have a lot of material wealth but we also have the highest rates of mental illness and depression ever recorded. We aren’t happy and we aren’t connected with one another. We feel alienated and alone. Studies show that once a person reaches the $75,000 mark in terms of yearly salary, anything above that makes zero difference in happiness.

The material growth we’ve been pursuing is not reliable and it’s destroying our planet, literally and figuratively. So how can we live in a better way? A Small Good Thing follows 6 people in the Berkshire Mountains of Massachusetts who are trying to live according to this philosophy. There’s a yoga instructor, dance teacher, college student, produce farmers, and a livestock farmer. What did they discover by simplifying their lives and taking a more holistic approach to happiness? You’ll have to watch it yourself to hear their answers. But here are some interesting and important ideas that I took away from the film…

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Do you ever look at your dog (or a friend’s dog, or a dog at the park) and think He looks so happy. I want to come back as a content dog in my next life! With all the research and studies being done on the science of happiness lately, you don’t need to wait until you’re next life. You can be happy right now.

Today I watched a documentary titled, simply enough, Happy. This 2011 film is directed by Roko Belic and follows happy people all over the world to find out what makes them so gosh darn happy. It’s an inspiring, feel good watch and I’ve jotted down the 10 key points of this film to help you get started.

1. 50% of our happiness levels are determined by our genes. This is called our genetic setpoint.

“Most of us are born with a certain range of happiness that we fall in most of the time.” -Sonja Lyubamirsky, PhD. Professor of Psychology at UC Riverside

The rest of the pie has to do with circumstances (job, social status, age, etc.) and intentional activity (aka what you do). The great part about the intentional activity is that you get to choose what that is. You can change your actions.

2. From your teenage years onward, you’re slowly losing dopamine synapses and dopamine neurons.

So you better use it or lose it – in this way, the brain is similar to any muscle in your body. Find experiences that release dopamine, the neurotransmitter in the brain that is responsible for feelings of pleasure and happiness. The best way to do that is through physical activity. Studies show that aerobic exercise is the best releaser of dopamine, especially if you do it in novel ways. Examples: exploring outdoors, playing sports, or just playing in general.

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