13 things science says will make you happier

13 things science says will make you happier13 things science says will make you happierIts no secret that were obsessed with happiness. After all, the pursuit of happiness is even enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. But happiness is fleeting. How can we find it and keep it alive?Psychologists at the University of California have discovered some fascinating things about happiness that could change your life.Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky is a psychology professor at the Riverside campus who is known among her peers as the queen of happiness. She began studying happiness as a grad student and never stopped, devoting her career to the subject.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreOne of her main discoveries is that we all have a happiness platzset point. When extremely positive or negative events happen- such as buying a bigger house or losing a job- they temporarily increase or decrea se our happiness, but we eventually drift back to our set point.The breakthrough in Dr. Lyubomirskys research is that you can make yourself happier- permanently. Lyubomirsky and others have found that our genetic set point is responsible for only about 50% of our happiness, life circumstances affect about 10%, and a whopping 40% is completely up to us. The large portion of your happiness that you control is determined by your habits, attitude, and outlook on life.Even when you accomplish something great, that high wont last. It wont make you happy on its own you have to work to make and keep yourself happy.Your happiness, or lack thereof, is rooted in your habits. Permanently adopting new habits- especially those that involve intangibles, such as how you see the world- is hard, but breaking the habits that make you unhappy is much easier.There are numerous badeanstalt habits that tend to make us unhappy. Eradicating these bad habits can move your happiness set point in short order.I mmunity to aweAmazing things happen around you every day if you only know where to look. Technology has exposed us to so much and made the world so much smaller. Yet, theres a downside that isnt spoken of much exposure raises the bar on what it takes to be awestricken. And thats a shame because few things are as uplifting as experiencing true awe. True awe is humbling. It reminds us that were not the center of the universe. Awe is also inspiring and full of wonder, underscoring the richness of life and our ability to both contribute to it and be captivated by it. Its hard to be happy when you just shrug your shoulders every time you see something new.Isolating yourselfIsolating yourself from social contact is a pretty common response to feeling unhappy, but theres a large body of research that says its the worst thing you can do. This is a huge mistake, as socializing, even when you dont enjoy it, is great for your mood. We all have those days when we just want to pull the covers ov er our heads and refuse to talk to anybody, but the moment this becomes a tendency, it destroys your mood. Recognize that when unhappiness is making you antisocial, you need to force yourself to get out there and mingle. Youll notice the difference right away.BlamingWe need to feel in control of our lives in order to be happy, which is why blaming is so incompatible with happiness. When you blame other people or circumstances for the bad things that happen to you, youve decided that you have no control over your life, which is terrible for your mood.ControllingIts hard to be happy without feeling in control of your life, but you can take this too far in the other direction by making yourself unhappy by trying to control too much. This is especially true with people. The only person you can control in your life is you. When you feel that nagging desire to dictate other peoples behavior, this will inevitably blow up in your face and make you unhappy. Even if you can control someone in the short term, it usually requires pressure in the form of force or fear, and treating people this way wont leave you feeling good about yourself.CriticizingJudging other people and speaking poorly of them is a lot like overindulging in a decadent dessert it feels good while youre doing it, but afterward, you feel guilty and sick. Sociopaths find real pleasure in being mean. For the rest of us, criticizing other people (even privately or to ourselves) is just a bad habit thats intended to make us feel better about ourselves. Unfortunately, it doesnt. It just creates a spiral of negativity.ComplainingComplaining is troubling, as well as the attitude that precedes it. Complaining is a self-reinforcing behavior. By constantly talking- and therefore thinking- about how bad things are, you reaffirm your negative beliefs. While talking about what bothers you can help you feel better, theres a fine line between complaining being therapeutic and it fueling unhappiness. Beyond making you u nhappy, complaining drives other people away.ImpressingPeople will like your clothes, your car, and your fancy job, but that doesnt mean they like you. Trying to impress other people is a source of unhappiness because it doesnt get to the source of what makes you happy- finding people who like you and accept you for who you are. All the things you acquire in the quest to impress people wont make you happy either. Theres an ocean of research that shows that material things dont make you happy. When you make a habit of chasing things, you are likely to become unhappy because, beyond the disappointment you experience once you get them, you discover that youve gained them at the expense of the real things that can make you happy, such as friends, family, and taking good care of yourself.NegativityLife wont always go the way you want it to, but when it comes down to it, you have the saatkorn 24 hours in the day as everyone else. Happy people make their time count. Instead of complaining about how things could have been or should have been, they reflect on everything they have to be grateful for. Then they find the best solution available to the problem, tackle it, and move on. Nothing fuels unhappiness quite like pessimism. The problem with a pessimistic attitude, apart from the damage it does to your mood, is that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy if you expect bad things, youre more likely to get bad things. Pessimistic thoughts are hard to shake off until you recognize how illogical they are. Force yourself to look at the facts, and youll see that things are not nearly as bad as they seem.Hanging around negative peopleComplainers and negative people are bad news because they wallow in their problems and fail to focus on solutions. They want people to join their pity party so that they can feel better about themselves. People often feel pressure to listen to complainers because they dont want to be seen as callous or rude, but theres a fine line between lendi ng a sympathetic ear and getting sucked into their negative emotional spirals. You can avoid getting drawn in only by setting limits and distancing yourself when necessary. Think of it this way If a person were smoking, would you sit there all afternoon inhaling the second-hand smoke? Youd distance yourself, and you should do the same with negative people. A great way to set limits is to ask them how they intend to fix their problems. The complainer will then either quiet down or redirect the conversation in a productive direction.You should strive to surround yourself with people who inspire you, people who make you want to be better, and you probably do. But what about the people who drag you down? Why do you allow them to be a part of your life? Anyone who makes you feel worthless, anxious, or uninspired is wasting your time and, quite possibly, making you more like them. Life is too short to associate with people like this. Cut them loose.Comparing your own life to the lives peo ple portray on social mediaThe Happiness Research Institute conducted the facebook inc Experiment to find out how our social media habits affect our happiness. Half of the studys participants kept using Facebook as they normally would, while the other half stayed off Facebook for a week. The results were striking. At the end of the week, the participants who stayed off Facebook reported a significantly higher degree of satisfaction with their lives and lower levels of sadness and loneliness. The researchers also concluded that people on Facebook were 55% more likely to feel stress as a result.The thing to remember about Facebook and social media, in general, is that they rarely represent reality. Social media provides an airbrushed, color-enhanced look at the lives people want to portray. Im not suggesting that you give up social media just take it sparingly and with a grain of salt.Neglecting to set goalsHaving goals gives you hope and the ability to look forward to a better future , and working towards those goals makes you feel good about yourself and your abilities. Its important to set goals that are challenging, specific (and measurable), and driven by your personal values. Without goals, instead of learning and improving yourself, you just plod along wondering why things never change.Giving in to fearFear is nothing more than a lingering emotion thats fueled by your imagination.Dangeris real. Its the uncomfortable rush of adrenaline you get when you almost step in front of a bus. Fear is a choice. Happy people know this better than anyone does, so they flip fear on its head. They are addicted to the euphoric feeling they get from conquering their fears.When all is said and done, you will lament the chances you didnt take far more than you will your failures. Dont be afraid to take risks. I often hear people say, Whats the worst thing that can happen to you? Will it kill you? Yet, death isnt the worst thing that can happen to you. The worst thing that can happen to you is allowing yourself to sie inside while youre still alive.Leaving the presentLike fear, the past and the future are products of your mind. No amount of guilt can change the past, and no amount of anxiety can change the future. Happy people know this, so they focus on living in the present moment. Its impossible to reach your full potential if youre constantly somewhere else, unable to fully embrace the reality (good or bad) of the very moment. To live in the moment, you must do two things1) Accept your past. If you dont make peace with your past, it will never leave you and it will create your future. Happy people know that the only good reason to look at the past is to see how far youve come.2) Accept the uncertainty of the future, and dont place unnecessary expectations upon yourself. Worry has no place in the here and now. As Mark Twain once said,Worrying is like paying a debt you dont owe.Bringing It All TogetherWe cant control our genes, and we cant control all of our circumstances, but we can rid ourselves of habits that serve no purpose other than to make us miserable.What makes you happy? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below, as I learn just as much from you as you do from me.Dr. Travis Bradberry is the award-winning co-author of the 1 bestselling book,Emotional Intelligence 2.0,and the co-founder ofTalentSmart, the worlds leading provider ofemotional intelligence testsandtraining, serving more than 75% of Fortune 500 companies. His bestselling books have been translated into 25 languages and are available in more than 150 countries. Dr. Bradberry has written for, or been covered by,Newsweek, BusinessWeek, Fortune, Forbes, Fast Company, Inc., USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, andThe Harvard Business Review.This article first appeared on LinkedIn.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

Dont Make These Mistakes When Writing a Resume

Dont Make These Mistakes When Writing a ResumeDont Make These Mistakes When Writing a ResumeDoes it matter if you make a mistake on your resume? It does. In fact, the quickest way to get screened out as an applicant is to submit a seriously flawed resume. Think about it Your resume is one of the main ways hiring managersassess you as a candidate. Typos and grammatical errors can make you look unprofessional and unqualified. Another big mistake submitting a resume that doesnt match the job for which you are applying. Doing this will knock you out of contention for the job, both by hiring managers and thetalent management softwarethey use to screen resumes. Review more information on the most common resume mistakes and tips on how to avoid them. The Top 10 Resume Mistakes 1. Misspellings and grammatical errors are resume killers.Spell check then proofread by placing a finger on each word. Catching your own errors is hard. Try printing your resume out, changing the font, or copying it into a blank email. These strategies help you binnenbinnensee your words with fresh eyes, which can help with catching errors. Reading it out loud is another option for catching mistakes. Or, ask a career coach, friend, or family member to review it for errors. 2. Not including keywords that match the job posting.Your resume should include the same keywords that appear in the job listing. If your resume doesnt have theright keywords, it most likely wont get noticed because you wont appear to be a strong fit for the job. 3. An outdated resume will make you look obsolete.Your resume should be updated and targeted for every job you apply for. Be sure to update yourskills sectionas well as yourwork history. Check to be sure that skills, especially the computer and technical skills, listed on your resume are current. 4. Including too much information.Dont tell your readers everything about each job. Focus on the highlights keep your document to one or two pages unless you are applying for a position within academic and research settings. (In that case, you might want to create a CV in distributions-mix of a resume.) Use formatting techniques like bullets and short paragraphs to enhance readability. Limit your resume to the last 10 to 15 years of work experience. You dont need to include everything you ever did. 5. Writing a resume objective which doesnt match the job.Avoid using anobjective statementwhich doesnt correspond well with the focus of the target job. Many job seekers now leave an objective off their resume or use aprofileinstead. If you include either, make sure it underscores your interest in the type of work for which you are applying. 6. Including a career summary that doesnt match the job requirements.Dont use a mismatched ?summary of qualificationsat the top of your resume. Your key skills in the summary should match manyof the job requirementsor else leave it off. 7. Writing position descriptions that dont show what you accomplished.Avoidjob des criptionswhich simply list your duties or responsibilities. Instead, write active statements which showcase relevant skills and accomplishments. Make sure the employer can easily see how you added value in your role. 8. Leading your paragraphs with mundane or irrelevant duties.Start with the hardest hitting statement which shows that you have key skills related to the job at hand. Otherwise, your reader might just skim by that description. 9. Not quantifying accomplishments.Avoid empty self-congratulatory phrases by quantifying accomplishments or providing other concrete evidence to support your assertions. Numbers, like people managed, sales figures, etc., are always helpful. 10. Being too modest.Share any awards or recognition you have received in a matter-of-fact manner i.e. Promoted to associate director after increasing annual donations by 25% or Received team player award at three annual company-wide awards ceremonies. While you dont want to seem boastful, your resume is the a ppropriate place to share accomplishments. The Top 5 Resume Grammar Mistakes Most resume mistakes fall into the 1 category for this list grammatical errors or typos. Brad Hoover, CEO of the automated proofreading serviceGrammarly, reports that there are five errors on a typical job seekers resume, and most of these issues - nearly 60% - are grammatical. The most common errors seen in resumes are Hyphen use (e.g. entry-level)Verb tense (e.g. led vs. leads)Formatting (e.g. inconsistent fonts or different styles of bullet points)Education information (e.g. misspellings or incorrect apostrophe use in a bachelors degree ormasters degree)Careless spelling mistakes (the most commonly misspelled words are simple words such as and planned and materials) How to Avoid Resume Mistakes Reread and edit your resume.At the very least, be sure to read your resume over once before submitting it for an application. However, it is very hard to catch your own mistakes. People tend to see what they intended to type (and not necessarily whats actually on the page). One tip is to read your resume and other application documents from the bottom up (or, from the last page back to the first page). This keeps you from focusing too much on the content and layout of the page, and more on any sentence-level errors. Rereading your documents out loud can also help you catch errors. Ask a friend.It is always a good idea to ask a friend or family member to look over your application before submitting it. Unlike you, they will be looking at your materials with a fresh set of eyes and may spot errors you do not. Utilize online resources.Sign up for a free trialof Grammarly, which will help you catch more mistakes than just using Words spelling and grammar checker. You can use Microsoft Words checker first, then run Grammarly to catch the rest of your errors. You can also use Grammarlysonline grammar check for free. Editorris another site you can use for online proofreading and copy edi ting. Its pay as you go, and one of the areas they specialize in is resumes and cover letters.

Engineers Contain Cancer Cells

Engineers Contain Cancer Cells Engineers Contain Cancer Cells Engineers Contain Cancer CellsBiomedical researchers at the University of Minnesota have shown they can contain krebs cells to their original site within the body by essentially tricking them into staying in one place. That prevents cancerous cells from migrating and spreading to other parts of the body. Prof. David Odde (at microscope) and Paolo Provenzano examine the way cancer cells move throughout the human body. bild University of MinnesotaCancer cells can sense the stiffness around them and will only move under their preferred conditions, the researchers found. Cells need a Goldilocks scenario to migrate. Their surroundings have to be just right not too hard and not too soft, says David Odde, a biomedical engineering professor at the university who led the research. His lab studies the mechanics of cancer cells division and migration.The researchers found the cells movement can be stopped with therapie s that fool the cells into thinking surrounding conditions are too stiff or not stiff enough. So the labs findings could lead to medication to prevent the spread of cancer, Odde says.In the past several years there have been a lot of experiments that look at how cells behave in response to different mechanical environment, he says. But how they do that and testing out those behaviors has been a major challenge.For You MRI-Safe Robots Treat EpilepsyWe brought an engineers perspective to a biological problem that will hopefully have a medical benefit. This is not typical in cell biology, but it was effective for us. Prof. David Odde, University of MinnesotaTo look at and test those behaviors, the lab builds computer models of cellular and molecular self-assembly and force-generation-dissipation dynamics. The researchers test the models using digital microscopic imaging of cells both outside the body and in engineered microenvironments.We brought an engineers perspective to a biologica l problem that will hopefully have a medical benefit, Odde says. We used a math and physics-based approach to building models and testing experimentally. This is not typical in cell biology, but it was effective for us.The work on the recent project started a decade ago when Clarence Chan, then a Ph.D. student in Oddes lab, wrote an equation that used the motor-clutch mechanismtaken from cell biologyto describe how cells gain traction within their environment based on its surrounding stiffness.When the environment is stiff enoughlike a paved roadcells, like a car, can move into higher gear, with the engine spinning faster and the clutch transferring more force to the parts that, like wheels, get more grip. In the case of cancer cells, the cells generatetraction forces that act like a motor to generate force and a clutch to transfer the force to structures that grip the tissue they move on, Odde says.Researchers then used the equation to build what Odde terms a cell migration simulat or. They used it to test predictions they had made about how cancer cells would react to environmental stiffness.The simulator showed that cancer cells showed a much higher sweet spot stiffness, like Goldilocks preferring a firmer bed. In other words, the simulator proved the predictions about cell behavior correct by showing there is an optimal environment for cancer cells to migrate outside their environment.Researchers found that the combination of two drugs they tested on cancer cells in a petri dish inhibited the motor and clutch functions of cancer cells and therefore inhibited their movement.Because the simulator predicts where the sweet spot will be, we can trick those cells into believing with the drugs that what was formerly not so greator too soft-an environment is just right, Odde says.The simulator could also be used to predict how a patients individual cancer cells will move and how they can be inhibited from migration to impede disease progression, he says.On the flip side, the same research also could be used to improve immunotherapy medicine, particularly chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR T) cell therapy. The CAR T approach re-engineers a patients own stem cells and introduces them back into the body to fight cancer.With stem cell therapy, we want to find the sweet spot to encourage the cells to move to the damaged or unhealthy tissue to restore lost function, Odde says. We can use our simulator to understand how those cells are behaving as well as to figure out how to enhance those cells to impede cancer.In addition to applying the labs cell-movement research to regenerative medicine, next steps include using the simulator to help improve cancer vaccines that encourage cancer-fighting cells to easily make their way to the tumors, Odde says.Jean Thilmany is an independent writer. For Further Discussion