Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realise your Potential for Lasting Fulfilment by Martin Seligman

Martin Seligman’s Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realise Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment is a self-help guide to utilizing the tools of “positive psychology” to reach a state of authentic happiness and fulfillment. Seligman argues that positive psychology, or the science of well-being, can help us discover our individual paths to happiness.

In the book, Seligman introduces three main elements of sustaining authentic happiness: identifying our highest values, strengths, and character traits, cultivating an attitude of contentment, and using our life experiences to increase our sense of pleasure. In the first part of the book, Seligman outlines the science of positive psychology and how it works to increase well-being. He explores such topics as how to recognize our signature strengths, how to cultivate a sense of optimism and gratitude, and how to identify our life mission. In the second part of the book, Seligman outlines the five steps of the Authentic Happiness process, a series of exercises and assessments designed to increase the reader’s well-being.

The exercises, tests, and quizzes described in the book are designed to help the reader gain insight into their true passions and values, and to identify the unique interests and strengths that bring them joy. Much of the book focuses on shifting our attention away from the materialistic and often artificial sources of satisfaction our culture often offers us, back to the individual’s authentic and lasting sources of contentment.

For those looking to achieve a higher level of happiness and fulfillment, Seligman offers numerous tools and strategies. He covers such topics as goal-setting and visualization, developing supportive relationships, self-reflection and mindfulness, finding meaning and purpose, discovering flow and leisure activities, and the practice of savoring life’s pleasures. Throughout the book, Seligman encourages readers to be self-aware and open to new experiences, while providing insights on how to maximize their chances for achieving lasting happiness.

Overall, Seligman’s Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realise Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment is an insightful and compelling guide to discovering our true purpose and achieving authentic and lasting happiness. Seligman offers a variety of tools, exercises, and self-discovery activities that provide the foundation for a lifetime of sustained happiness. By following Seligman’s advice, readers can identify the paths to fulfillment and discover how to increase the quality of their lives.