100 Simple Secrets Of The Best Half Of Life

by Niven, David

• ISBN13: 9780060564735
• ISBN10: 0060564733
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-04-01
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publications

Summary

Practical advice on how to thrive in the second half of your life, based on scientific studies. The sixth book in the bestselling 100 Simple Secrets series. What do people who relish the second half of their lives do differently than those who dread getting older? Sociologists, therapists and psychiatrists have spent entire careers investigating the ins and outs of successful aging, yet their findings are inaccessible to ordinary people, hidden in obscure journals to be shared with other experts. Now the international bestselling author of The 100 Simple Secrets series has collected the most current and significant data from more than a thousand of the best scientific studies on the second half of life. These findings have been boiled down to one hundred essential ways to find and maintain joy, health, and satisfaction every day of your life. Each one is accompanied by a true story showing the results in action. o The Baby Boomers are hitting retirement age. This upbeat, light approach will appeal to the enormous market of citizens grappling with the effects of becoming 'senior', looking to discover the positive benefits of aging beyond discount tickets at the movie theatre. Books about aging well continue to sell year in and year out. The Simple Secrets approach will stand out among the heavier self-help/psychology titles and will without a doubt become an affordable impulse and gifty mainstay in this category. o A good inexpensive gift for parents and grandparents.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Thinking About Your Future	xi
Happiness Is Not an Accident	1	(2)
You Must Approve of Yourself	3	(2)
Keep Going	5	(2)
Try Something New	7	(2)
You Still Are Who You Were	9	(2)
Happy Looks for Happy	11	(2)
The Mirror Will Be Kinder	13	(2)
Fun Is Not Over	15	(2)
See the Beauty Around You	17	(2)
Never Retire from Life	19	(2)
Have Time for Thoughts	21	(2)
Turn Off the Bad News	23	(2)
Express Yourself in What You Do	25	(2)
You Are Not Old	27	(2)
Money Can't Buy Happiness	29	(2)
The Only Requirement Is Embracing the Lack of Requirements	31	(2)
Keep Your Fears in Line	33	(2)
Sign Up for Everything	35	(2)
Be Decisive	37	(2)
Believe You Can	39	(2)
See the Real Pay in Work	41	(2)
Know Your Health	43	(2)
See a New Way	45	(2)
Avoid Generational Competition	47	(2)
Respond to Stress	49	(2)
The Best Life Needs No Trophy	51	(2)
The Future Can Be Brighter Than the Past	53	(2)
Stay in Control	55	(2)
See Beyond You	57	(2)
Transitions Can be Both Happy and Sad	59	(2)
Embrace Challenges	61	(2)
Get Away from It All	63	(2)
Live Beyond Your Family Model	65	(2)
Life Gets Easier	67	(2)
Volunteer for Yourself	69	(2)
Never Give Up	71	(2)
Get Out of the Car	73	(2)
Don't Gamble Your Future	75	(2)
Find a Physician You Like	77	(2)
Who You Are Is Not Just What You Do	79	(2)
Foundations Shift, but Life Stands	81	(2)
Share What You Know	83	(2)
Discuss Your Worries, Then Don't Dwell on Them	85	(2)
It All Looks Better over Time	87	(2)
Keep Relationships on Level Ground	89	(2)
Adapt	91	(2)
Make Home Home	93	(2)
Don't Let Irritation Be Louder Than Joy	95	(2)
Geography Does Not Limit Family Life	97	(2)
Vote	99	(2)
Forgive	101	(2)
Eat for Nutrition, Not for Compensation	103	(2)
We're Happier Older Than Younger	105	(2)
Each Part of Life Must Function	107	(2)
See the Person, Not the Label	109	(2)
Laugh Your Way to Answers	111	(2)
Exercise	113	(2)
Feed and Cultivate Friendships	115	(2)
Communicate on Their Terms	117	(2)
Remember to Care for Yourself When Caring for Others	119	(2)
Be Careful Choosing Home Associations	121	(2)
See Around Career Roadblocks	123	(2)
See a Kid, Be a Kid Again	125	(2)
Stretch	127	(2)
Let Old Secrets Stay Secrets	129	(2)
Listen to Your Favorite Music	131	(2)
Practice Maintenance for Life	133	(2)
Call Town Hall	135	(2)
Pay Attention to Nonverbal Communication	137	(2)
Wash the Dishes	139	(2)
Be Open to a New View	141	(2)
Love Evolves but Can Stay Strong	143	(2)
Use a Computer	145	(2)
The Youngest and Oldest Like Work the Least	147	(2)
Compromise What but Never Who	149	(2)
Your History Strengthens Your Future	151	(2)
Share Your Home	153	(2)
Honor Your Spiritual Beliefs	155	(2)
Wear Many Hats	157	(2)
Put Stuff in Its Place	159	(2)
Seek Meaning	161	(2)
We Never Outgrow Jealousy	163	(2)
Cherish Your Heritage	165	(2)
Share Your Fun	167	(2)
Pay Attention to Your Dreams	169	(2)
All the Time Is Too Much	171	(2)
Regrets Hold Us Back	173	(2)
See Your Goals	175	(2)
Give the Gift of Yourself	177	(2)
Boredom Is the Enemy	179	(2)
Redefine Career	181	(2)
Travel the Stable Road	183	(2)
It's Less What Happened Than What Happened Next	185	(2)
You Define Success	187	(2)
Never Stop Learning	189	(2)
View Your Life as a Choice	191	(2)
Make Your Mark on the Next Generation	193	(2)
Why Not Be Optimistic?	195	(2)
There's No Deadline for Your Dreams	197	(2)
Do It Now	199	(2)
Sources	201

Excerpts

100 Simple Secrets of the Best Half of Life
What Scientists Have Learned and How You Can Use It

Chapter One

Happiness Is Not an Accident

We have strategies for most things in our lives -- from work, togames, to how to get home from town two minutes faster. But weleave some of the most important parts of our lives, like our happiness,to chance. Happiness is not like height; you don't just get acertain amount and then have to live with it. Happiness can beimproved -- if you know what you are doing and what you are notdoing, and you care to change.

For Patrick, it started with a request from a neighbor. Theneighbor had played the part of Santa Claus for several years, creatinga tradition of a visit from Santa to all the children in theneighborhood. But one year, Santa had a cold and asked whetherPatrick could take over for him that day.

Patrick donned the suit and passed out candy canes and goodwishes to all the neighborhood children, calling them each byname and convincing them he was for real. "When I put on thesuit, I actually felt like Santa Claus," Patrick says. "It was a trulymagical feeling."

When the old Santa saw how much Patrick enjoyed the job, hetold Patrick he would be happy to let him take over. Patrick saw thepotential for sharing some joy with others and expanded the reachof his duties from his neighborhood to area hospitals. "Sick childrenwould light up when they saw me," Patrick recalls. "I wouldsit with them, and they would smile from ear to ear. It was such anhonor to be able to bring them a good feeling like that."

Over the years the Santa suit wore out and Patrick upgraded toa top-of-the-line model -- "the kind they use at the really goodmalls," he explains.

Patrick has been playing Santa for so long now that he's beginningto see the children of the children he saw as Santa when hefirst started out. But Patrick has no plans to find a new man for thesuit. "Santa never retires," he says.

Researchers found that the majority of the subjects they
studied were not able to identify anything they had done
recently to try to increase their happiness or life satisfaction.100 Simple Secrets of the Best Half of Life
What Scientists Have Learned and How You Can Use It. Copyright © by David Niven. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

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Excerpted from 100 Simple Secrets of the Best Half of Life: What Scientists Have Learned and How You Can Use It by David Niven
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.