Positive thinking

Hector Gonzalez-Jimenez, ESCP Europe  Travelling offers new experiences and can open people’s minds. It allows you to get out of your daily groove – of work, commuting, housework and cooking – to think about the things that really matter and enjoy some quality time in a different place. Of course, with growing awareness of the environmental impact of long haul flights and tourism, many people are now opting for more sustainable methods of travel – with some choosing staycations over trips overseas . But given that my previous research shows the positive impact cultural diversity can have on a person’s well-being, it makes sense to not miss out on those trips abroad entirely. Instead, look for more environmentally friendly ways to travel to different countries. My study found that having an enhanced affinity towards different cultures and global connectedness – also known as a “cosmopolitan” outlook – means you are more likely to have a better relationship with, and more

Lowri Dowthwaite, University of Central Lancashire   Happiness is big business, with sales of self-help books in the UK reaching record levels in the past year. Perhaps that’s because happiness is no longer the birthright of the elite. Just half a century ago, psychologist Warner Wilson seemed to suggest that you are less likely to be happy if you’re uneducated and poor when he stated that a happy person generally is “young, healthy, well educated, well paid, extroverted, optimistic, worry-free, religious, married, with high self-esteem, high job morale, modest aspirations, of either sex and of a wide range of intelligence”. Today happiness is something we can all aspire to. But, as many of us try out gratitude journals, meditation and positive affirmations, we often discover that they don’t make us substantially happier. The same often goes for reaching the goals that society values – such as marriage, an interesting job or physical fitness. So is happiness just a myth?