Best Books On How To Be Happy
Publushed by:
Diane HeardLast updated:
2021-10-25Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
- Straightforward
- Applicable to real-life situations
- Good sense of humor
CHECK LATEST PRICE
How to Be a Happy Academic: A Guide to Being Effective in Research, Writing and Teaching
- Blend of research and pragmatic advice
- Step-by-step guidance
- Easy to read
CHECK LATEST PRICE
What a Time to Be Alone: The Slumflower's Guide to Why You Are Already Enough
- Evaluation of self worth
- Teaches healthy relationships
- No-nonsense
CHECK LATEST PRICE
Happiness is something everyone wants, but it’s not always easy to know how to make it a regular guest in your life. There are many ways to try to achieve happiness, and books can help to guide you to feeling happier.
Why do books make you happy? Reading about stories, whether fictional or non-fictional, can help you to escape stress while also finding creative ways to deal with your problems.
Sometimes, all you need to find happiness in your life is to read an interesting book! With that in mind, here are five best books on how to be happy, whether in your career or life in general.
After reading these books on finding happiness within yourself, you’ll feel rejuvenated and ready to make a positive change.
Best Overall: Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
Short summary
This book is inspiring because the author went through a variety of obstacles in his life that he learned to move through and from which he found inner peace as well as happiness.
The obstacles are astounding as they include him having a heart attack at the age of 26 as well as dealing with a panic disorder. Reading this book is essential if you’re experiencing trauma as it will inspire you.
Quick Facts
- Author: Daniel De La Cruz
- Pages: 388
- Cover: Paperback
Pros
- If you’re starting a spiritual journey and you want to connect with a higher power, such as God, you’ll like that this book provides you with guidance on how to do that.
- Instead of being a straightforward how-to book on happiness, this book is part memoir so that you can see the author’s first-hand experiences in his journey to finding himself and happiness.
- The book is filled with a lot of wisdom that you’ll be able to apply to real-life situations in which you find yourself.
- The author’s voice is kind, funny, and honest, so you’ll feel like you’re listening to your best friend or an older family member who’s sharing tips on how to live life to your best potential.
- The author writes in a very relatable way, such as by explaining how he used to feel a lack of motivation to put action behind his desires. It’s an honest account that will evoke something within you and make you question what you need in your life to be happy.
Cons
- Some of the concepts in the book are ones that have made the rounds in the past.
- It might feel like the author leaps around a bit at times, instead of digging deeper into specific issues.
Be notified about new blog posts
Sign up with your email for our newsletter and be notified when we publish new blog posts. Don’t miss valuable advices.
Recommended product
Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
Runner Up: How to Be a Happy Academic: A Guide to Being Effective in Research, Writing and Teaching
Short summary
If you’re an academic, you’ll know that it can be stressful work at times. This book will help you deal with the stress, such as by increasing your skills and teaching you how to manage the professional side of academic life.
The book’s authors, Alexander Clark and Bailey Sousa, help readers to take a deeper look at their personal challenges and they provide real-world solutions readers can use to remedy these problems, while featuring inspiring stories.
This book will help you add some positivity to all areas of your life, not just your career, so it’s worth adding to your bookshelf or e-reader.
Quick Facts
- Authors: Alexander Clark, Bailey Sousa
- Pages: 240
- Cover: Paperback
Pros
- This book is a good blend of research and pragmatic advice that academics will find useful.
- It comes with step-by-step guidance as well as simple tools that you can use in your life.
- Examples of what you can expect to learn from this book include how to better manage your workload and how to develop skills such as teaching, writing, and presenting.
- What you’ll love about this book is that it also provides tips for managing your life outside of your career. There are sections on interpersonal relationships and how to achieve a successful work-life balance.
- This book is enjoyable to read and user-friendly. Its main messages are displayed in large type so that they can become like affirmations, and will be easy to remember. The book is laid out in an organized way so you can find sections easily.
Cons
- If you’re looking for a quick fix on how to be a successful academic, this book is not for you.
Be notified about new blog posts
Sign up with your email for our newsletter and be notified when we publish new blog posts. Don’t miss valuable advices.
Recommended product
Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
Alternative: What a Time to Be Alone: The Slumflower's Guide to Why You Are Already Enough
Short summary
The colorful cover of this book itself will make you smile. Inside the book, you’ll feel like you’re having coffee with your best friend who’s telling you why being alone is great.
The book is said to help you navigate through the world, as it doesn’t just provide you with information on how to be happy alone but teaches you how to deal with stress and empower yourself in spite of the obstacles that might block your way.
While it focuses on how you can celebrate yourself, it also extends that love to your relationships to improve them, providing you with a great all-round motivational book.
Quick Facts
- Author: Chidera Eggerue
- Pages: 192
- Cover: Hardcover
Pros
- You know you’ll get good advice from the author of this book because she’s an award-winning blogger and speaker. She owns a blog called The Slumflower that tackles issues related to female empowerment, self-love, self-exploration and confidence.
- The chapters of the book are unique. The chapter “You” focuses on evaluating your self-worth and knowing how to handle yourself in the stressful world.
- There’s also a chapter called “Them,” which looks at how it’s crucial to our inner peace and wellness to avoid other people’s demons.
- While the book teaches you how to be happy in your life and on your own, there’s also a valuable chapter called “Us” that teaches you how to maintain healthy, happy relationships while avoiding those that are toxic.
- The advice in this book is of the no-nonsense variety while still being warm and inspiring.
Cons
- Some of the concepts in the book are ones that have made the rounds in the past.
- It might feel like the author leaps around a bit at times, instead of digging deeper into specific issues.
Be notified about new blog posts
Sign up with your email for our newsletter and be notified when we publish new blog posts. Don’t miss valuable advices.
Recommended product
Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
Alternative: Your Strengths Blueprint: How to be Engaged, Energized, and Happy at Work
Short summary
Work can be stressful at times. This book helps you to get more enjoyment out of it. Unlike the other book we featured in our review that specifically tackles academia, this book provides a more general approach to having a more fulfilling career.
What’s unique about this book is that it uses your strengths to increase your satisfaction. It’s easy to forget about the strengths you have and how focusing on them can help you feel happier in your career.
This book helps you to boost your goals and skills, find satisfaction in your career, and gain happiness in general. What you’ll love about it is that it gives you strategies that you can use in a practical way to make the most of your strengths and talents.
Quick Facts
- Authors: Michelle L. McQuaid, Erin Lawn
- Pages: 256
- Cover: Paperback
Pros
- The authors of the book share the knowledge they’ve gained about psychology to give the tips in the book a solid foundation.
- This book is great for people who don’t know their strengths and provides them with tools they can use to find them. The book also provides information about how to use the character strengths in a positive way.
- It has a step-by-step plan that you can use to bolster your strengths at work every day, and this is information that you can use in any type of career.
- This book on how to be happy in life contains science, but it’s offered to the reader in a user-friendly way.
- The book’s authors offer evidence-based examples as well as strategies you can use to perform better at work, so you get theory and practical elements that work so well together.
Cons
- Some people have said that the book’s introspective sections are sometimes a bit difficult to follow.
Be notified about new blog posts
Sign up with your email for our newsletter and be notified when we publish new blog posts. Don’t miss valuable advices.
Recommended product
Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
Alternative: How to Be Alone: If You Want To, and Even If You Don't
Short summary
You might want to be alone, or you might not. But in both cases, you can be happy and self-fulfilled! This book was written by a former Cosmopolitan Sex & Relationships editor who’s also the host of a popular comedy show.
This book is therefore not just inspiring but funny.
This book doesn’t only give you advice on how to be alone but it also provides information about the author’s life, such as her obstacles and how she overcame them, to motivate readers.
Quick Facts
- Type: Corded electric
- Size: 5.5 x 6.75 x 10.75 inches
- Special feature: Pump
Pros
- People who have purchased this book have said that it feels like a warm hug. This book on how to be happy is friendly, funny, and will make you feel like you’re listening to heartwarming stories from a best friend.
- If you have past trauma that you can’t seem to move on from, this book will help you to deal with your feelings, and you might find that you get closure on them. This is what makes this one of the best books on how to be happy with yourself.
- The book is filled with wit and humor, so you’ll find yourself laughing because the author manages to turn her previous trauma into humor.
- Although the title might feel a bit misleading, this is one of the best books on how to be happy alone as it contains a wealth of information about self-care and self-value.
- Interestingly, this book is said to be for people who feel that their childhood is unresolved, people who feel more comfortable making connections online than in real life, and people who want to feel less alone in life.
Cons
- Some people have said that this book can be triggering if you suffer from anxiety.
- It’s worth noting that this is a gut-wrenching memoir so it’s not ideal for you if you’re looking for a lighter read.
Be notified about new blog posts
Sign up with your email for our newsletter and be notified when we publish new blog posts. Don’t miss valuable advices.
Recommended product
Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
Books On How To Be Happy FAQ
After reading our guide to five best books on how to be happy, you’ll be well on your way to learning tips that can benefit your relationships, life, and career.
With that in mind, let’s look at some interesting information about happiness books – and how to find happiness in general.
What to read to cheer you up?
If you want to boost your mood, you can find happiness by reaching for a good book. The type of book that will cheer you up might vary from the book your best friend or co-worker would enjoy. There are tons of lists online that feature mood-boosting books, but the ones you choose will depend on the types of books you like.
Some books that have humor as their focus, such as Bossypants by comedienne Tina Fey, can be seen as the equivalent of watching a lighthearted and funny movie. What’s especially great about this type of memoir is that it’s laugh-out-loud funny while still offering substance and depth.
If you love losing yourself to a great work of fiction, there are many humorous books that will entertain you. Books by humor writers such as Marian Keyes, David Sedaris, and Kurt Vonnegut are sure to tickle your fancy and make you smile.
Another type of book that could boost your mood when you’re feeling under the weather is a book that’s focused on giving you tips on how to find happiness. It helps if the author is someone who’s gone through tough times and came out stronger because of them, as this is sure to inspire you and make you feel inspired. An example of this type of book is How to Be Alone: If You Want To, and Even If You Don’t that we’ve featured in our reviews.
How does a good book make you feel?
Have you ever finished reading a book and feel amazing? There are many different ways in which a good book can make you feel good.
You might feel inspired after reading someone’s memoir or you might feel lighthearted after reading a humorous book. Sometimes, a book can be so gripping that it helps you to escape the stress of your life. When you reach the end of the book, you might feel like you’ve managed to lose yourself in it for a few hours. This can be rejuvenating and it’s a great way to recharge your batteries.
Amazingly, reading has been found to put your brain into a pleasurable state that’s similar to meditation, and it also encourages similar health benefits – you’ll feel calmer and more relaxed.
How can I be happy alone?
When you are alone, it can be disheartening and frightening. But it doesn’t have to be. Being alone can actually be an empowering, happy experience. If you’re new to being alone, you might not know how to embrace it. Here are some tips.
- Differentiate between being lonely and alone. The two terms are not interchangeable. When you’re alone, you can enjoy your solitude. It doesn’t mean that you’re without love or friends, or that you’re anti-social. Being alone is a choice!
- Disconnect from social media. It’s easy to fall into the trap of seeing people on social media and assuming that they have perfect lives, amazing relationships, and are surrounded by tons of friends. This can make you compare your life to those representations of life (which often aren’t always genuine), which can make you feel bad about being alone. By removing this pressure and logging off social media, you can enjoy your solitude.
- Focus on what makes being alone great. There are many benefits linked to being alone, such as being able to travel and do whatever you want to whenever you want to, and it’s good to focus on these. You should write a list of all the things you want to do and get started on achieving them.
- Learn new things. Whether it’s learning a new language or learning a skill that can benefit you in your career, learning encourages the immersion of yourself in your life and it boosts your self-confidence, which makes you feel happier.
- Start volunteering. When you reach out and help others in your community, this can help you to feel better about yourself and it gives your life meaning. A UK study found that people who volunteered at least once per month were found to have better mental health as compared to those who volunteered less frequently or not at all.
- Start a gratitude journal. It’s easy to forget the things that you’re happy to have in your life. By making a list of everything you’re grateful for on a daily basis, you will see that you have so much to be happy about – and so much more than what other people don’t have.
- Meditate on a daily basis. Meditation has been found to have many benefits, such as helping you to be centered and more in tune with your feelings. A study also found that meditation increases the amount of grey matter in the brain, the part which regulates emotions.
How can I be happier?
While you might think that happiness is something difficult to achieve, it’s actually easier to find and enjoy than you think. Here are some easy ways to start feeling happy right now.
- Smile. You don’t have to wait for something to make you smile. By smiling first, you encourage your brain to release dopamine, a feel-good chemical that boosts your mood.
- Exercise. This helps to get your blood pumping and it’s great to help you eliminate stress at the end of the day, but exercise also reduces anxiety and boosts your self-esteem.
- Spend time outside. Getting into nature on a daily basis can help to boost your mood. You just need to do this for 20 minutes to improve how you feel.
- Declutter your living space. The place where you spend most of your time should make you feel happy. It won’t achieve this if it’s cluttered as that can be stressful – you’ll feel weighed down whenever you enter your home. Clean your home and keep it tidy so that it feels light and airy.
- Be wary about what you consume. I’m not just talking about food, but what you take in every day. You won’t feel happy after spending time with toxic people who drain you, and you won’t feel good if you’re following accounts on social media that always bring you down or make you feel like you’re not worthy enough. By being pickier about the people and things you bring into your life, you’ll be able to choose happiness.
- Have some fun. It’s easy to get caught up in the routine of life, but sometimes you just have to let loose and do something that you want to do purely for fun. This could be roller skating in a park, going to watch a movie, eating your favorite Thai food, building a RC car and track, or whatever else boosts your mood and makes you focus on the present moment.
Conclusion
If you need to perk your spirits and feel happier in your life, there are many books on happiness that can help you.
In this guide, we’ve featured five best books on how to be happy, with some featuring advice you can apply to your career and others helping you to learn from people’s real-life stories so that you can feel empowered when faced with obstacles in life.
Memoirs of a Happy Psycho: A Cheat Code on How to be Happy
- Straightforward
- Applicable to real-life situations
- Good sense of humor
Diane Heard
Diane offers meaningful living counseling, guidance, and support to people who go through different crises. Combining personal experience with sound knowledge, Diane is committed to helping individuals become the best versions of themselves, even when immediate life situations tend to suggest otherwise. Diane is well-versed in behavioral, social, cognitive, and emotional aspects of the human mind. Armed with this understanding, she created Themeaningfulliving.com –home to everyone with a strong desire to take back control of their lives. If you are looking for simple yet powerful techniques and tips for living the best life you ever wanted, Diane will hold your hand and gently guide you.