Brock Bastian

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The Other Side of Happiness

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Pain is bad, right? In this fascinating book, Brock Bastian will convince you otherwise. Drawing on both vivid everyday examples and surprising laboratory findings, he shows how pain, suffering, and struggle give us pleasure, make us kinder, focus our thoughts, and give our life meaning. Bastian is a brilliant researcher and deep thinker and THE OTHER SIDE OF HAPPINESS is a delight to read

Brock Bastian skilfully shatters the zeitgeist of positive thinking, showing how struggle and suffering are vital elements of a life well lived

Adam Grant, author of ORIGINALS and OPTION B with Sheryl Sandberg

This is a marvellous, thought-provoking challenge to how we think about and go about the pursuit of happiness. If you're tired of all the simple minded books telling you to just cheer up and be happy, this is the book for you!

Roy F. Baumeister, author of WILLPOWER: REDISCOVERING THE GREATEST HUMAN STRENGTH

Explains why hardship sometimes yields richer lives that are laden with meaning, deep social connections, and unexpected bliss. A beautifully written and important book that should be required reading for anyone who's ever wondered why well-being so often flourishes in unexpected places

Embracing a More Fearless Approach to Living

In Western culture, we have become addicted to positivity. We try to eradicate pain through medication and by insulating ourselves and our children from risk, even though we are the safest generation that ever lived. Yet in his research renowned social psychologist Brock Bastian has found that hardship and sadness are neither antithetical to pleasure nor incidental: they are a necessary ingredient for happiness. 
 
Drawing on psychology, neuroscience and internationally acclaimed findings from Bastian's own lab, The Other Side of Happiness encourages us to take a more fearless approach to living that acknowledges the value of pain in our lives. As Bastian shows us, the most thrilling moments of our lives are usually balanced on a knife edge between pleasure and pain, whether it is finding your true love, holding your new-born for the first time, finishing a marathon or even taking a dip in an icy sea. This is because hardship quite literally increases our capacity for happiness, making us stronger, more resilient and more connected to those around us.

'Pain is bad, right? In this fascinating book, Brock Bastian will convince you otherwise. Drawing on both vivid everyday examples and surprising laboratory findings, he shows how pain, suffering, and struggle give us pleasure, make us kinder, focus our thoughts, and give our life meaning' Paul Bloom, author of Against Empathy 
 
In today's culture, happiness has become the new marker of success, while hardships are viewed as personal weaknesses, or problems to be fixed. We increasingly try to eradicate pain through medication and by insulating ourselves from risk and offence, despite being the safest generation to have ever lived. Yet in his research, renowned social psychologist Brock Bastian has found that suffering and sadness are neither antithetical to happiness nor incidental to it: they are a necessary ingredient for emotional well-being. 
 
Drawing on psychology, neuroscience and internationally acclaimed findings from Bastian's own lab, The Other Side of Happiness encourages us to take a more fearless approach to living. The most thrilling moments of our lives are often balanced on a knife edge between pleasure and pain, whether it is finding your true love, holding your new-born for the first time, finishing a marathon or even plunging into an icy sea. This is because pain and the threat of loss quite literally increase our capacity for happiness, as Bastian reveals, making us stronger, more resilient, more connected to other people and more attuned to what truly matters. Pain even makes us more mindful, since in our darkest moments we are especially focused and aware of the world around us. 
 
Our addiction to positivity and the pursuit of pleasure is actually making us miserable. Brock Bastian shows that, without some pain, we have no real way to achieve and appreciate the kind of happiness that is true and transcendent. 
 
'Brock Bastian skilfully shatters the zeitgeist of positive thinking, showing how struggle and suffering are vital elements of a life well lived' 
Adam Grant, author of ORIGINALS and OBTION B with Sheryl Sandberg 
 
'If you're tired of all the simple minded books telling you to just cheer up and be happy, this is the book for you!' Roy F. Baumeister, author of WILLPOWER: REDISCOVERING THEGREATEST HUMAN STRENGTH 
 
'Explains why hardship sometimes yields richer lives that are laden with meaning, deep social connections, and unexpected bliss. A beautifully written and important book that should be required reading for anyone who's ever wondered why well-being so oftenflourishes in unexpected places' Adam Alter, author of DRUNK TANK PINK

Dr. Brock Bastian is an Associate Professor in the School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne. His studies have been reviewed in leading news outlets such as Time Magazine, Huffington Post, Economist, New Scientist, Scientific American, CNN, ABC, Globe and Mail, The New Yorker and New York Magazine. Brock's pioneering approach to research has been acknowledged with the Wegner Theoretical Innovation Prize, and his presentations have been included on the ABC Radio National Big Ideas podcast.

The Other Side of Happiness

Embracing a More Fearless Approach to Living

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Brock Bastian skilfully shatters the zeitgeist of positive thinking, showing how struggle and suffering are vital elements of a life well lived

This is a marvellous, thought-provoking challenge to how we think about and go about the pursuit of happiness. If you're tired of all the simple minded books telling you to just cheer up and be happy, this is the book for you!

Explains why hardship sometimes yields richer lives that are laden with meaning, deep social connections, and unexpected bliss. A beautifully written and important book that should be required reading for anyone who's ever wondered why well-being so often flourishes in unexpected places

About Brock Bastian

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