The Happiness

Project.   

Ok, here is the long story, not the short one, of how I first heard mention of the "The Happiness Project" book.  

Last year when I was dropping off Misty and Tiffany at the airport after Bunny Hollow, there was several hours between when Tiffany's flight left and Misty's did.  So Misty and I went to the Barnes and Nobles store in the Gateway Mall.  It was there that Misty told me about the book that her cousin, Angie, had told her about.

I was intrigued, so I bought the book, but then I totally forgot about it.  A few months later I was talking to my friend, Dianne, and we were discussing being more positive and energetic.  I then remembered about the book and told her about it.  Amazingly, she also had the book but had not done anything with it. So, since August we have been trying to get together to start the project.

So here we are, in January, and we really are going to get together to start.  I went to the website and was intrigued by the test to help help identify your tendencies.  Very interesting.

Take the test here:     http://www.gretchenrubin.com/

 
I tested out to be an Obliger.  

Obligers meet outer expectations, but struggle to meet inner expectations. They’re motivated by external accountability; they wake up and think, “What must I do today?”

Obligers excel at meeting external demands and deadlines, and go to great lengths to meet their responsibilities, so they make terrific colleagues, family members, and friends. Others rely on them tremendously.

However, because Obligers resist inner expectations, it can be difficult for them to self-motivate—to work on a Ph.D. thesis, to attend networking events, to get their car serviced.

Obligers depend on external accountability, with consequences such as deadlines, late fees, or the fear of letting other people down. In fact, Obligers need external accountability even for activities that they want to do.

Behavior that Obligers sometimes attribute to self-sacrifice or lack of self-esteem—“Why do I always make time for other people’s priorities at the expense of my own?”—is often better explained as need for accountability.

The weight of outer expectations can make Obligers susceptible to burnout, because they have trouble telling people “no.” They may describe themselves as “people-pleasers.” They may, in fact, reach the point of Obliger rebellion, a striking pattern in which they abruptly refuse to meet an expectation. They may rebel in symbolic ways, with their hair, clothes, car, and the like. 

So, it is a good thing I'm starting the project.  If I kept up with my obliger ways, the next time you see me I could have orange and purple hair.