One of the brightest, clearest lights in the psychoanalytic community is Dr. Nancy McWilliams. Dr. McWilliams recently spoke about happiness or psychological wellness at Villanova University.
If you haven’t got an hour and half to devote to the video, I’ve summarized her happiness points below. Bookmark the link though, and put this on your list of enrichment activities. Starting at the 5:00 minute mark will bypass the commercials and get you straight to the speech.
The building blocks of a happy life:
1) An intimate, passionate, authentic relationship;
2) Things you do that matter to you and to others;
3) Things you do that please your senses, whole body, imaginative play;
4) An accurate read on what you can control and what you can’t;
5) A deep sense of your own worth even when times are tough;
6) An ability to imagine the inner experience of another’
7) A sense of aliveness;
8) An ability to tolerate thoughts and feelings; and
9) An ability to balance your need to define and express yourself against your need to be a part of the community.
