Puppet Show Teaches Pakistani Children about Peace and Happiness

From TheSpec.

Today TheSpec reports on a new puppet/storytelling/art show that aims to teach the children of Pakistan about peace and happiness, states of mind that children in especially war-torn regions may have never experienced.

As Jahan Zeb, the project leader, says, "When we were growing up, there was peace. There was happiness in those villages … towns and cities. Now our children, our (second and third) generations, they don’t know. Was there happiness? Was there some hope? They don’t believe. They don’t know what is hope."

Zeb became motivated to start a peace project when the Taliban took over the Swat region of Pakistan, where his wife's family lived. He created the Art and Peace Education Exchange (or APEX) with Journey of Peace.

The project itself is a 16-part series of stories told through puppets. The stories deal with a displaced Afghan family and have been included in the school curricula of Afghanistan provinces Kandahar, Kabul, and Samangan since 2007. In Pakistan, the stories will be translated and adapted from dealing with landmines, which are prevalent in Afghanistan, to dealing with terrorism and suicide bombing.

The project just had their first show in Canada at The Pearl Company.

Casual Friday: "Happiness Tips for the Unemployed"

Thankfully the streets don't look like this
just yet. From The Omaha Project.

It's been awhile since I've read any new books relating to happiness, so again I turn to the Internet for guidance. Today I found this interesting article by Aaron Jacobsen and Michelle Santos of Tiny Buddha. It's a list of five tips to help you avoid despair if you are unemployed (which you very well might be, according to the latest figures).

Some of these tips may be common sense, but even if they are, hearing/reading them from an outside source can help. Again, you should read the actual article for explanations, but here is a summary of the list:

1. Identify your emotions. When you think about what you're feeling and give it a label you can act accordingly instead of reacting impulsively.
2. Keep going to social activities. Negative emotions tend to amplify in isolation.
3. Try to think positively. This may be hard to believe, but studies show that positive thinkers actually have a more accurate view of the obstacles in their life, while too many negative thoughts can give you tunnel vision.
4. Stay open to different career paths. You'll find more opportunities if you're willing to change from a banker to a nurse (for example) than if you always try to stick to one career.
5. Take advantage of your free time. This may sound a bit callous, but losing your job DOES give you more free time. Since you're not on the job from 9 to 5 anymore, you might as well take advantage of your free time by doing any hobbies that make you happy or by developing any of your lesser-used skills.

Anyway, these are just some tips to keep in mind. Just remember that getting back on your feet may be difficult, but it doesn't have to be impossible!

Sleep Important for Happiness

By Mui-Joo Wee. From Fine Art America.

Here's a story that might be obvious, but it's good to know anyway:  according to this news item from WebMD, people with sleep deficiencies are as much as three times more likely to experience poor mood during the day. This comes from a new Mental Health Foundation report entitled "Sleep Matters". The foundation sees poor sleep as a public health concern and is using the new report as a starting point to raise awareness of the importance of sleep.

As Dr. Andrew McCulloch, Chief Executive of the foundation, says, “Whilst great emphasis is rightly placed on the importance of diet and exercise, sleep has for too long been neglected as a major influence on the physical and mental health of the nation. Up to a third of the population currently suffers from insomnia, and with stress and longer working hours on the rise in the current economic climate, it is crucial that we now treat the issue of sleep problems as the major public health concern it is.”

The study is based on data from the "Great British Sleep Survey," which gathered responses from 5,328 people (1,376 men and 3,952 women). Compared to those with normal sleep patterns, respondents with insomnia were four times as likely to experience relationship problems and three times more likely to have trouble getting work done. Since insomnia is often caused by stress in the first place, having these symptoms can create a downward spiral where stress leads to insomnia, which leads to more stress, which leads to more insomnia, etc. etc.

If YOU have trouble sleeping, head over to The Mental Health Foundation's "How Did You Sleep?" website, where you can take their one question survey and read free sleep tips. You'll be happy you did!

Google Hosts Art Competition for Students to Draw Happiness

From the Doodle 4 Google website.

Today in Irish news:  according to this story from The Anglo-Celt, Google is running its third annual Doodle 4 Google competition, in which K-12 students submit artwork relating to a theme. This year's theme is "To me, happiness is..."

As an example of the process, the Loreto College in Ireland received 80 submissions. The student council then picked six entries to go on to the regional competition, during which four made it to the national competition. Now a round of online voting will decide the next finalists. You should vote on your favorite doodle on the website by January 31. The winner gets their art on the main Google page for 24 hours, a laptop, and a €10,000 technology grant for their school.

Google is also doing this competition in other countries, but each one has a different theme and deadline. This seems like a pretty great contest, so remember to vote!

New British Charity Aims to Spread Happiness

Mark Williamson, director of the
charity. From The Young Foundation.

Hot on the heels of yesterday's story comes this one from the BBC. A charity called Action for Happiness will be spreading happiness tips to anyone within ear- or Internet-shot. They have a PDF workbook called the Happiness Challenge that you can download here. You can also watch the former Buddhist monk Andy Puddicombe give an introductory mindfulness lesson in the news story itself.

From their website, Action for Happiness already looks quite well-connected through Facebook and Twitter. We'll keep an eye on them to see what effect they have, but for now there's not much more to report. Britain and a lot of other countries could certainly use the help, though!

One in Four British Workers Unhappy with Their Job

From Marc's Leadership Lessons.

Today the Press Association reports on a new survey that shows around 25% of British employees are unhappy with their job, while around 30.5% are merely "ambivalent," with employees in finance and law being the unhappiest. These results come from the recruitment firm Badenoch & Clark, who surveyed around 1,000 office workers.

Heidi Waddington, associate director of Badenoch & Clark, says, "Economic uncertainty over the past year has put tremendous pressure on employees. This trend is particularly evident in professional services, which has resulted in heightened intensity in the workplace and increasingly poor morale."

I would be interested in seeing figures like this for lower class workers (not in an office), but we may have to wait until Britain completes its happiness study. I'd also be interested in results for America and other countries. You can read more stories about employee happiness by clicking here. Corporations may especially want to pay attention to this one, which shows a correlation between higher employee happiness and higher stock value.

Casual Friday: "9 Easy Ways to Be Happier"

From Real Simple.

In my quest to do as little work as possible, sometimes it's nice to have a helping hand. Today I can get away with even less work than usual because Julia at The Thank You Project tipped me off to this article by Marcia Menter from Real Simple. It's a look at nine easy ways to be happier.

You should go to the actual article to look at the pretty pictures and read the explanations, but here's a summary of the list:

1. Cool yourself off. Cool temperatures apparently produce better moods than hotter temperatures (could have fooled me).
2. Remember happy times in your past. Nostalgia can be a great mood booster.
3. Don't obsess over past failures. This goes hand-in-hand with the previous tip.
4. Give away money. As I've said before, generosity toward others makes YOU feel happier.
5. Eat a snack around 2 p.m. This is the time of day when serotonin levels dip, and a snack can help.
6. Exercise. It boosts mood and helps your brain.
7. Limit your choices. This may be counterintuitive, but too many options at once can produce unnecessary stress.
8. Learn a new skill. This gives you variety and sense of accomplishment.
9. Make your bed. Eh? Well apparently doing little tasks like this can make you more satisfied throughout your day.

Anyway, it's a good, easy list with some stuff I've never read before. Also, I love getting tipped off because it means I don't have to scrounge around for something to post! If you'd like to make my job easier, go ahead and tip me off to interesting articles, books, or videos in the comments section or through email. See ya!