4 Inconvenient Truths About Community Building for a Better World
Is it possible to have the kind of ideal community as described by Nelson Mandela? I am afraid not. And for good reasons, too. Suppose that there was an ideal community. Your or my presence would ruin it because none of us are perfect. We are all broken in some way,...
Hope Keeps us Moving Forward
Ever since being discharged from the hospital three days ago (Feb 20, 2023), my mind could not help but marvel at the wonderful capacity to hope and dream in times of great danger and suffering. I am able to pen this article this morning (Feb 23, 2023)...
From Anger Management to Meaning Transformation to Peace and Joy
"I am very angry. God knows that I try, but I can't help it - I have every reason to be mad" (Segal, 2003). If this sentiment sounds familiar, it is because all of us have experienced similar inner struggles with respect to anger. Why are We Angry? Wouldn't you be...
Ultimate Employee Engagement and Wellbeing
Employee engagement (Harter, 2021) and wellbeing (Bersin, 2022) remain the hottest topics during the post-pandemic era. The great resignation, “quiet quitting” (Harter, 2022), and the resistance to return to the office (Cutter & Bindley, 2022; Guilford &...
Finding Happiness through Suffering
Happiness, how sweet the sound! It's an inalienable right, a worthy life goal, and the yearning of every soul, yet oftentimes it leads to pain and ruin. Like moths flinging themselves into a flaming fire, many have ruined their lives in hot pursuit of happiness. Just...
How can I be Free from my Struggles and Live a Happy Life?
Abstract This paper invites you to consider a more adaptive view towards happiness and suffering which may change your life. It suggests that the old paradigm of seeking pleasure and avoiding pain is no longer adequate in the current digital age, and a new paradigm of...
President’s Column: How Can We Survive and Thrive in Wartime?
The daily news of the Russian invasion of Ukraine brings back many painful memories. The scenes of Russia’s deliberate bombings of hospitals and schools, and the relentless shelling of residential areas fill my heart with sadness and rage, because the United Nation...
The Suffering Hypothesis: How the New Science Supports the Ancient Wisdom of Meaningful Suffering
The above title sums up the main thrust of all my academic and professional activities this year. It is never easy to change people’s deeply entrenched negative view of suffering, but I have at least turned the corner, thanks to the pandemic. Now, more people are...
President’s Column: Why do we Suffer?
This is perhaps the oldest and most urgent question. The proverbial Job raised the question. The wise man Solomon raised the same question. Countless philosophers and psychologists have wrestled with the mystery of suffering. After four decades of research, I still do...
A Festival to Celebrate the Human Spirit
It is the worst of times; it is the best of times. But we cannot celebrate the best without overcoming and transcending the worst. This fundamental principle of flourishing is what we want to covey at our forthcoming Meaning Conference. By all accounts, it is the most...
Transcend the Pandemic: How to Redesign the Future of Work
Abstract The coronavirus has drastically changed the world of work and demands a redesign for organizations and individuals in order to meet the numerous new challenges, such as working remotely and a reduction of resources. In this paper, I propose a...
7 Reasons Why the New Normal May Be Good for You
COVID-19 is a wakeup call. It will return in some form if we do not learn the lessons from it and make the necessary changes. COVID-19 has turned the world upside down and shaken the very foundation of our civilization. But it has also provided a rare opportunity for...