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Kelsey Herrington

Professor Ditch

English 115

07 December 2019

Team In vs Team Out

Different spaces within our realm exist, both internal and external, whether outside forces

or our own minds. While in these numerous spaces, adjusting how we speak, think, and feel is

human. Also human is the yearn to achieve happiness. David Brooks, author of the article “What

Suffering Does” approaches the human yearn for happiness by comparing it to the natural

process of suffering. He states this process changes a person, forcing them to increase their

vulnerability understand true individuality. His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard Cutler,

authors of “The Sources of Happiness”, discuss happiness as being determined by one’s mindset.

They urge readers to understand they have the capability to reach happiness through their

mentality. Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of “How Happy Are You and Why?”, presents research

and statistics to readers to begin the discussion of happiness. She defines set points, where one

fits on the Happiness Continuum, explaining to readers they cannot shift or alternate this genetic

point, but rather create happiness within their life. Graham Hill, author of the article, “Living

with Less. A Lot Less.” resonates with Lyubomirsky, as he reflects on a time when he realized

his living space rooted his emotional emptiness. Brooks, the Dalai Lama, and Cutler argue that

happiness can be achieved by transforming one’s mindset in their internal space, while Hill and

Lyubomirsky both argue that happiness can be achieved by transforming circumstances in the

external space.
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David Brooks, the author of an opinion column in the New York Times, argues that

happiness can be achieved internally through a transformation: suffering. A happy life is derived

from the suffering that occurs during trying situations, according to the author. He states, “people

feel formed through suffering” and that it “gives people a more accurate sense of their own

limitations, what they can control and cannot control” (284, 286). By enduring suffering, one

transforms within their mind. It causes a change which helps them to be more aware of

themselves and their space. They have the ability to reach happiness once they go through this

pain because the response to this sort of pain is, as Brooks explains, “placing the hard

experiences in a moral context and trying to redeem something bad by turning it into something

sacred” (286). Instead of dwelling on the hard experiences and allowing them to negatively

impact their lives, these sufferers can produce positivity. The author says this happens when

“some people double down on vulnerability. They hurl themselves deeper and gratefully into

their art, loved ones and commitments” because their suffering induced passion (287). Rather

than letting the action of suffering defeat it is used as motivation within one’s mind towards the

happiness humans yearn for. In his article, Brooks stresses that after suffering, one can transform

their internal space to achieve happiness.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard Cutler, the authors of the book The Art of

Happiness and of the excerpt, “The Sources of Happiness”, argue that happiness can be achieved

through the transformation of one’s mindset and mentality. They address the human

phenomenon of comparing when they say, “constant comparison with those who are smarter,

more beautiful, or more successful than ourselves tend to breed envy, frustration, and

unhappiness” (22). This is the opposite mindset necessary to reach happiness and the authors

encourage readers to change this by thinking differently. They support their argument with their
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data: “Researchers have conducted a number of experiments demonstrating that one’s level of

life satisfaction can be enhanced simply by shifting one’s perspective and contemplating how

things could be worse” (23). This shift the research discusses is the transformation that needs to

happen and the perspective one possesses is how they view a situation, this affects mindset,

occurring internally. The studies “show we can increase or decrease our sense of life satisfaction

by changing our perspective [and] clearly point to the supremacy of one’s mental outlook of

living a happy life” (24). Here, the authors directly show that alterations to our mental state are

necessary to attempt reaching happiness. His Holiness the Dalai Lama explains, “if you are

mentally unhappy or frustrated, then physical comfort is not of much help. On the other hand, if

you can maintain a calm, peaceful state of mind, then you can be a very happy person even if

you have poor health”, stating physical attempts at creating happiness are ineffective while

attempts within the internal space could result in happiness (25). The alteration of mental

outlook, the transformation, that happens within one’s mind, their external space, can help to

achieve happiness.

Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of “How Happy Are You and Why?”, argues “having goals

in and of themselves is strongly associated with happiness and life satisfaction” (195). Before

she describes these goals, she first explains that despite emotional fluctuations, the good and bad

days, everyone has a set happiness point. She says, “Human happiness, like height or

temperature or IQ, lies on a continuum, a numerical scale that ranges from very, very low to

very, very high. All of us fit somewhere on that scale” (183). Lyubormirsky then inserts a pie

chart which displays that happiness is determined by 10 percent circumstances, 50 percent set

point, and 40 percent intentional activity (184). She uses this information to explain to readers

how they can generate happiness for themselves. These set points are defined by their name: they
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are concrete, and “The fountain of happiness lies not in changing our genetically determined set

points, for they are, by definition, resistant to change, influence, or control” and despite them we

can intentionally act a certain way to achieve certain desired results (195). This intentional

activity happens within one’s life, rather than inside their mind. Genetically set points, or what is

happening internally, can not be shifted to achieve happiness, but rather the setting and execution

of goals can do so. She explains, “your genes need a specific environment, a particular set of life

experiences, in order to be expressed. Many of these life experiences are indeed under your

control, and their potential for influencing your happiness lies in the activities and strategies”,

these being intentional activity (194). So the author explains through transformations on the

outside life, the external space, happiness can be achieved.

Graham Hill, author of the New York Times article, “Living with Less. A Lot Less.”,

argues that in order to achieve happiness, one must minimize materialism in their external space.

Hill explains his life prior to transforming his external space. He says his “life was unnecessarily

complicated”, he had two large houses with “lawns to mow, gutters to clean, floors to vacuum,

[and] roommates to manage” (309). But then, he “met Olga, an Andorran beauty, and fell hard.

[His] relationship with stuff quickly fell apart” as he began life with her in Barcelona, where they

lived “in a tiny flat” and “packed a few clothes, some toiletries and a couple of laptops and for

his work, Hill “started new companies from an office that fit in [his] solar backpack” (311). Due

to this change in lifestyle, he “felt free, [he] didn’t miss the car and gadgets and house” (312).

Because of this transformation in his outside space, Hill was able to achieve happiness. Hill

encourages readers to mirror his minimalistic living in their own lives if they wish to achieve the

happiness humans yearn for. He says, “In a recent study, the Northwestern University

psychologist Galen V. Bodenhausen found that ‘irrespective of personality, in situations that

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activate a consumer mind-set, people show the same sorts of problematic patterns in well-being,

including negative affect and social disengagement’” (311). When people consume, like buy

excessively, spend their money, contribute to the market, their behavior is negative. So, by

focusing on their actions and limit the amount they consume, they can work to reach happiness.

According to Hill, one can achieve happiness by minimizing how much they buy and own,

within their external space.

David Brooks, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and Howard Cutler believe happiness can be

achieved within an internal space. David Brooks views happiness through the lens of suffering

and the healing process from that. His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard Cutler explain to

readers that they can adjust their mindset to create their own happiness. Oppositely, both Sonja

Lyubomirsky and Graham Hill believe happiness can be achieved through adjustments in the

external space. Sonja Lyubomirsky urges readers to set goals and through this they can increase

their happiness level. Graham Hill reflects on his life and the events which triggered revelation,

and he instructs readers to minimize their life and focus on what is in front of them.

Works Cited

Brooks, David. “What Suffering Does”. Pursuing Happiness: a Bedford Spotlight Reader, by

Matthew Parfitt and Dawn Skorczweski, Bedford/St. Martin’s, a Macmillian Education

Imprint, 2016. Pp 284-287.

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Dalai Lama, His Holiness and Howard Cutler. “The Sources of Happiness”. Pursuing

Happiness: a Bedford Spotlight Reader, by Matthew Parfitt and Dawn Skorczweski,

Bedford/St. Martin’s, a Macmillian Education Imprint, 2016. Pp 21-32.

Hill, Graham. “Living with Less. A Lot Less.” Pursuing Happiness: a Bedford Spotlight Reader,

by Matthew Parfitt and Dawn Skorczweski, Bedford/St. Martin’s, a Macmillian

Education Imprint, 2016. Pp 308-312.

Lyubomirsky, Sonja. “How Happy Are You and Why?” Pursuing Happiness: a Bedford

Spotlight Reader, by Matthew Parfitt and Dawn Skorczweski, Bedford/St. Martin’s, a

Macmillian Education Imprint, 2016. Pp 179-196.