I have recently noticed that I read some pages from a book every day, very few, but it has spontaneously become a sort of a steady habit, and, besides, it is quality reading, because I do it first thing in the morning and those pages stick to me later along the whole day (and btw, would have I noticed it in case I hadn’t written about it before? I suspect this is one of those subtle gifts you get for blogging).
Anyways, when I noticed this, my usual, logical next thought was communicating this founding, together with others of the kind, to my faithful Zerebria readers. And I was about to write the corresponding list post, when, suddenly, I realized that the job had already been done for me (and maybe, subliminally, it was from where my inspiration came).
Ever heard of the Pareto Principle, also called the 80/20 Principle? Basically, it states that 80% of any outcome comes from 20% of the causes applied (in fact it does not ’state’ it, just reveals it, because it happens to be a law of nature, applicable to EVERYTHING, ain’t that amazing?).
The principle, sadly, was outcast for a long time only because the Italian fascism used it as a justification for some social felonies. In the nineties, it became popular again thanks to the book “The 80/20 Principle”, by Richard Koch. Koch explores all the possibilities and tremendous consequences of such a principle (for example, that we have to learn to dissociate effort and reward). Needless to say, I’ll discuss this principle in further posts. By now, I only want to share Koch’s list of daily habits for happiness. So without further ado:
- Exercise
- Mental stimulation
- Spiritual/artistic stimulation/meditation
- Doing a good turn
- Taking a pleasure break with a friend
- Giving yourself a treat
- Congratulating yourself.
My reading practice would be my particular form of #3. It is funny to see that I have spoken about most of the other issues in previous posts (I particularly like #6, “giving yourself a treat”, one of those cases in which an efficient expression contributes to boost the meaning).
Excellent stuff for a checklist, don’t you think so? Do you have a better one?
Related posts:
More about being absolutely positive
Titles are your friends
A reader is not a steamroller
Reach for the moon, but start with your (two) shoelaces
Prevent your books from becoming stuck