How (And Why) To Find More Beauty in the Everyday
What happens when we intentionally look for\xa0beautiful\xa0things\xa0in our day-to-day lives? We explore a lab-tested practice shown to help you feel happier.
\n\nLink to Transcript: http://tinyurl.com/yretvrkp
\n\nEpisode summary:
\n\nWhen was the last time you witnessed a beautiful moment? Maybe it was a striking sunset, a kind exchange between strangers, or a hearty laugh between two friends. Beautiful moments surround us, and research suggests that taking the time to admire them can actually benefit our health and happiness. For our show, restorative justice advocate Darnell Washington looked for 9 beautiful things each day and reflected on them. In doing so, he recognized how admiring different types of beauty from nature to the goodness of others, can have a powerful impact on his own humanity. Later, we hear from the psychologist who created the practice, Ren\xe9 T. Proyer, about how making it a point to notice different kinds of beauty benefits our happiness and reduces depression.
\n\nPractice:
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Every night for at least one week, set about 15 minutes before going to bed to think about nine beautiful things that happened during the day, 3 each in the following categories.
\nWrite down three beautiful things in human behavior (morally, positively valued behavior, ie good deeds).
\nWrite down three things you experienced as beautiful in nature and/or the environment.
\nWrite down three beautiful things in general that you noticed during the day\xa0 (referring to aesthetics, like art, music, architecture, etc).
\nNote why you found each of these nine things beautiful.
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Today\u2019s guests:
\n\nDarnell Washington is a formerly incarcerated restorative justice advocate from California.
\n\nListen to Darnell\u2019s Ted Talk: http://tinyurl.com/cujz79fk
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Ren\xe9 T. Proyer is a professor and researcher at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg.
\n\nLearn about Ren\xe9\u2019s work: http://tinyurl.com/4sa9vye9
\n\nFollow Ren\xe9 on Twitter: http://tinyurl.com/3x5986u6
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Resources from The Greater Good Science Center:
\n\nFinding Beauty in the Everyday (The Science of Happiness Podcast): http://tinyurl.com/2w2ht55h
\n\nWhy Seeing Beauty Matters, Even in the Midst of War: http://tinyurl.com/4zy436xk
\n\nHow Nature Can Make You Kinder, Happier, and More Creative: http://tinyurl.com/d2vzpsaj
\n\nFinding Awe in the Ordinary: http://tinyurl.com/aavr2pkv
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More Resources on Appreciating Beauty:
\n\nBBC - The neuroscience of beauty: What your brain finds beautiful \u2013 and how this shapes your thoughts: http://tinyurl.com/47s6zcre
\n\nTED - Nature. Beauty. Gratitude: http://tinyurl.com/upnrzthc
\n\nCNN - It\u2019s the little things: Why animals, sunsets and coffee make us happy: http://tinyurl.com/yckephaf
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We want to hear from you! What beautiful moment have you noticed recently? Email us at happinesspod@berkeley.edu or use the hashtag #happinesspod.
\n\nHelp us share The Science of Happiness!
\n\nRete us and share this link with someone who might like the show: http://tinyurl.com/yfsx9zwp