Happiness and the Human Spirit

Introduction xi

PART 1: LIFE, LIBERTY, AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS
1 The Pursuit of Happiness 3
2 Spiritual Deficiency Syndrome 11

PART 2: THE UNIQUE HUMAN SPIRIT
3 The Ability to Be Self-Aware 27
4 The Ability to Be Humble 37
5 The Ability to Choose 43
6 The Ability to Be Patient 51
7 The Ability to Make the Most of Circumstances 57
8 The Ability to Improve 63
9 The Ability to Be Compassionate 71
10 The Ability to Have Perspective 81
11 The Ability to Have Purpose 87
12 The Ability to Search for Truth 99
13 The Ability to Change 105

PART 3: 10 STEPS TO HAPPINESS
Step 1: "I am aware that I have some shortcomings, and I want to become a better person." 117
Step 2: ¿I realize that I can be in charge of my behavior.¿ 121
Step 3: ¿I realize that changing my character traits is a slow process, but I am willing to persist. I'm going to work on my character defects, one by one.¿ 125
Step 4: ¿I am going to look for ways to overcome my negative character traits.¿ 129
Step 5: ¿I will cultivate enjoyable spiritual experiences.¿ 137
Step 6: ¿I will give serious consideration to the relative importance of things.¿ 139
Step 7: ¿I will avoid things that are inimical to my spirituality.¿ 143
Step 8: ¿I will laugh more.¿ 145
Step 9: ¿I will work to keep setbacks from discouraging me.¿ 147
Step 10: ¿I realize there is never an end to spiritual growth.¿ 149

Epilogue 151
Suggestions for Further Reading 153