A mentalist’s guide to being happy<!---->

A mentalist’s(ˈmen(t)ələst) guide to being happy

The illusionist(iˈlo͞oZHənəst) Derren Brown(broun) has studied the philosophy(fəˈläsəfē) and psychology(sīˈkäləjē) of happiness - and he argues(ˈärgyo͞o) that many of us could take a radical(ˈradək(ə)l) new approach to improving our wellbeing.

By David(ˈdāvid) Robson

Imagine that you are standing on one side of a river, and you want to reach a village(ˈvilij) on the other side.

You have a group of cheerleaders(ˈCHi(ə)rˌlēdər) behind you, egging(eg) you on. So you set off, full of determination(dəˌtərməˈnāSH(ə)n). But you have forgotten to take the river’s current into account – and no matter how hard you strain(strān) your muscles(ˈməsəl), you can’t quite overcome it. By the time you reach the other bank, you have been pulled far from the place you intended to be.

We may not like to admit it, but our life follows a similar(ˈsimələr) trajectory(trəˈjektərē) – as forces(fôrs) beyond our control drag us from our chosen(ˈCHōzən) path. And the importance of recognising(ˈrekəɡˌnīz) this fact is just one of the many lessons I learnt from Derren Brown, the illusionist, “mentalist” (mind-reader) and writer, whose book Happy explores the philosophy and psychology of wellbeing.

Most self-help books would suggest that you can fight(fīt) life’s currents with determination and positive(ˈpäzədiv) thinking. But taking inspiration(ˌinspəˈrāSHən) from ancient(ˈānCHənt) Greek and Roman philosophers(fəˈläsəfər) like the Stoics(ˈstōik) and 19th Century German thinker Arthur(ˈärTHər) Schopenhauer(ˈSHōpənˌhou-ər), as well as modern scientific(ˌsīənˈtifik) research, Brown believes that this is simply a recipe(ˈresəˌpē) for disappointment and frustration(frəˈstrāSHən). “We’re better off making our peace(pēs) with the fact that that is the dynamic(dīˈnamik) of life – rather than creating a false idea that we can somehow control everything to bring it in line with what our goals are,” he says.


http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20190605-a-mentalists-guide-to-being-happy