Net Miles Of Smiles

Who says the road to nirvana is lined with megabucks and designer handbags? Experts are now discovering it’s the little (and often free!) things that lead to true happiness — like these bliss boosters.  

  By Colleen Rush
  

There’s good news in the joy business these days: Recent research suggests it’s not a fancy lifestyle that makes people happy. “Rather, any effortless pleasure or thing that strengthens social bonds or gives you a positive sense of control has measurable mental benefits,” says Leaf Van Boven, associate professor of psychology at the University of Colorado at Boulder. So we teased out the latest tips from positive-psychology pros. They’re all easy and potent…and most don’t cost a dime.

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Flower Power
A cheap sunflower stem for your desk gives a bunch of benefits in one. It has associations with the sun and an almost human-looking face, and the color of its petals has been shown to evoke positive emotions. Plus, people with plants in their offices actually feel happier about their jobs, according to a new study in HortScience.

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Comments (0) Jan 28 2009

A little old lady was walking down the street, dragging two plastic garbage bags with her, one in each hand. There was a hole in one of the bags, and every once in a while a $20 bill flew out of it onto the pavement. Noticing this, a policeman stopped her….”Ma’am, there are $20 bills falling out of that bag…” “Darn!” says the little old lady…..”I’d better go back and see if I can still find some. Thanks for the warning!”

“Well, now, not so fast,” says the cop. “How did you get all that money? Did you steal it?” “Oh, no”, says the little old lady. “You see, my back yard backs up to the parking lot of the football

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Comments (0) Sep 18 2008