Happiness and Flow

I am a huge fan of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and so I was excited to see that he has made a TED talk: Flow, the secret to happiness. You can read the transcript here, and I highly (HIGHLY) recommend his book: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.

For a graphic that encapsulates some of his thinking, here's something I found in an article on happiness, flow, and leadership:

Deskercise!

Just Google "deskercise" and you can find lots more articles, images, and videos! I picked out three items to include her:


A workout at work? This report in the Washington Post features 12 exercises, with ratings based on which were the most popular and effective, along with simple video animations:

Deskercise! 33 Smart Ways to Exercise at Work
This article contains a whole long list of exercises you can do at work, and many of them you can do at your desk:
1. The Twinkle Toe
2. The Stair Master
3. The Slog, Then Jog
4. The Celebratory Split Squat Jumps
5. The Cubicle Wanderer
6. The Mover and Shaker
7. The Wall (Street) Sit
8. The Last Man Standing
9. The Patient Printer
10. The Silent Seat Squeeze
11. The Seated Leg Raiser
12. The Desk Squat
13. The Lunch Break Hammy
14. The Grim Reamer
15. The Cubicle Dip
16. The Stapler Curl
17. The Namaste
18. The Secret Handshake
19. The Fist Pump
20. The Knuckle Sandwich
21. The Flapper
22. The Casual Lean
23. The Lumberjack
24. The Office Genie
25. The Pencil Pinch
26. The Shoulder Shrug
27. The Pinstripe Push-Up
28. The Nape Shaper
29. The Desk Chair Swivel
30. The “Weeee” Desk Chair Wheel
31. The Posture Perfecter
32. The Fab Abs Squeeze
33. The “Crunch Time” Crunch

Deskercise: 17 Exercises You Can Do At or Near Your Desk
1. Fidget
2. TMJ Exercise
3. Bruxism Exercise
4. Active Arm Stretches
5. Shoulder and Neck Stretches
6. Back Workout
7. Wall Sits
8. Seated Bicycle Pedal
9. Spider Push-ups
10. Shake it Up
11. Wrist Stretches
12. Butt Crunches
13. Calf Stretches
14. Deep Knee Bends
15. Jumping Jacks
16. Shadow Boxing
17. Windmills

Books and Happiness

And, of course, thanks to the miracle that is the public library and also the Internet, you can get books for FREE. :-)

You can't buy happiness... but you can buy books,

and that's kind of the same thing.