Be Happy Online - Week 1: The Gift of Happiness

On April 15th I will be hosting Part One of the first ever Be Happy Online course. This internet event is hosted by Hay House, publishers of my new book Be Happy.

Part One of Be Happy Online is entitled: The Gift of Happiness. In this seminar, I will teach you how to create a definition of happiness that you can really live by. I will also talk about the happy learning curve and show you how to identify your major life lessons about happiness.

As a special offer, Hay House are offering for those who book now a complimentary copy of my flip calendar Happiness NOW.

To purchase a ticket for the full Be Happy Online course at $99 go to Hay House.

To purchase a ticket for just Part One of the Be Happy Online course at $20 click here.

Be Happy - Available NOW in US

I am delighted to announce the publication of my new book Be Happy. While the official launch date is April 15th, the book is available now on Amazon.com and also in bookstores across America.

To celebrate the launch of Be Happy, my publishers Hay House have published a Be Happy film on You Tube.

Hay House has also issued an E-blast with a number of generous offers on it. For example: 

If you order Be Happy now you will be entered to win two full-conference tickets to see me live at the I CAN DO IT! San Diego Conference on May 1-3, 2009 (including hotel accommodations for two nights). You can also enter to win access to my Be Happy eight-week online workshop starting on April 15 or the Be Happy Abridged Audio Book 6-CD Set. Winners will be chosen on Apr 13!

Also if you order Be Happy between April 2 and April 30 you will receive gifts from Hay House and sponsors, including: (1) Free access to Lesson #1 of my Be Happy eight-week online workshop ($20 value) and (2) Audio excerpts from the Be Happy Audio Book ($5.95 value).

Be Happy 8-Week Course Online - Starts April 15th

I am delighted to announce dates for the first ever Be Happy 8-Week course Online.   The course is hosted by Hay House publishers, and it  consists of a weekly 2-hour live session, in which I will take your calls and respond to your e-mails, while coaching you on essential principles of happiness.  You can choose to listen to each session live or on-demand (at a time convenient to you).  To purchase a ticket for this event go to Hay House. 

As a special offer, Hay House are offering for those who book now  a complimentary copy of my flip callendar Happiness NOW.

Below is a short outline of what I will cover on the 8-week program.  I hope you can join me. 

NOW, for the first time ever, you can take the Be Happy 8-week online course. Step-by-step, Robert introduces you to a set of proven principles and exercises that psychologists have hailed as “a genuine fast-track to happiness.” With his trademark insight, warmth and humor, Robert will share personally with you his distinctive philosophy and practice on how to experience true self-acceptance, everyday abundance, loving relationships, and inner success.

Week One: The Gift of Happiness
Part 1: Defining True Happiness
Create a definition of happiness that really works for you.
Part 2: A Happy Learning Curve
Identify what your life is teaching you about happiness right now.

Week Two: The Happy Self
Part 1: #1 Happiness Principle
Get this principle, and you will attract more happiness instantly.
Part 2: Follow your Joy
Give up the pursuit of happiness and start following your joy.

Week Three: Choosing your Life
Part 1: Choosing Happiness
Learn how to choose happiness, instead of chasing happiness.
Part 2: Healing Unhappiness
Learn how to handle unhappiness in an honest and positive way.

Week Four: Joy Unlimited
Part 1: The Real More
Clarify your life-goals, and commit to what you really want.
Part 2: The Fear of Happiness
Discover how you are limiting your own happiness and success.

Week Five: The Heart of Happiness
Part 1: Your Family Story
Heal old family patterns and commit to living an authentic life.
Part 2: The Relationship Questionnaire
Bring more imagination, creativity, and fun to your relationships.

Week Six: Everyday Abundance
Part 1: The Happiness Contract
Increase your natural capacity for prosperity and success.
Part 2: The Receiving Meditation
Let yourself be so happy you almost feel guilty, but not quite!

Week Seven: Love and be happy
Part 1: Love and fear
Make love more important to you than anything else.
Part 2: The Forgiveness Principle
Give up all hope for a better past, and live happily even after.

Week Eight: Happiness NOW!
Part 1: Milking the Sacred Now
How to make today even more enjoyable than yesterday.
Part 2: Shift Happens!
Your life changes, when you do.

Everyday Abundance: "A Rich Man"

When I prepare for a workshop I give, I often find that my thoughts turn to poetry. Not exactly sure why; it just happens that way. At the recent Everyday Abundance workshop, I shared a number of personal poems that address the relationship between happiness and abundance. Here is one of them. It is called “A Rich Man.” I hope you enjoy it.

A rich man
does not think about
money
much.

And yet, he knows the
price of
every
thing.


A rich man
is someone who is willing
to invest everything
he has
in love.

Love is a bond that grows,
no matter what the
economy is
doing.


A rich man
will forgive everyone
no matter what it
costs him.

He will gladly give up
all of the grievances and
resentments that his
ego gambles on.


A rich man
will sell off all of his
future investments
in an instant, if it means
he can be with
you
now.

He is interested only in the
gift of the present.
And he is happy to leave
the future and the past
right where they are.


A rich man
has learned to appreciate
what is here,
in his life,
right here.

He is rich in gratitude,
and he has discovered
that what he
appreciates,
appreciates.


A rich man
knows that in a world of
front-page news,
fast-track careers,
designer clothing, and
tragic sports results,
you have to know
what is real.


A rich man
knows the true value of
everything.
He knows what is real.
His heart is set on
what lives
forever.

Everyday Abundance: Abundance is not an It!

On February 27th-28th, I facilitated a workshop on Everyday Abundance at the Columbia Hotel, London. For two days, a room full of people, who came from all walks of life, explored some big themes including definitions of real abundance, blocks to real abundance, and also what can enable greater abundance.

I put this workshop on now, in the middle of this economic recession, because I believe we are each being called to reflect on what is of real value in our lives. The workshop was a wonderful occasion, and one that I personally got a lot out of. It was full of deep realizations, rich sharings, helpful conversations, and new commitments going forward.

The Everyday Abundance workshop started with a reading by Avril Carson and Lizzie Prior of a poem I wrote called True Abundance. This poem set the tone for our workshop. Here it is:

Abundance is not an it.
It is not to be found in
a shopping basket.

Abundance is not an achievement.
You will not find it at the end
of your never-ending
to-do list.

Abundance is not a place to get to.
Your zip code will not make you
happy.

Abundance is not a competition.
You cannot have more than your
neighbour and feel truly
abundant.

Abundance is not having everything.
You can’t have everything.
Think about it.
Where would you put it all?

Abundance is not about
getting more or
having more.
First and foremost, it is about
being more.
Being more of Who you
really are.

The reason why abundance is so
desirable is that it is your
true nature.

Abundance is Who you are.
It is what you experience when you
stop depriving yourself of what
is already yours.

Valentine's Day: The Love Dedication

A few years ago a journalist interviewed me for an article on the psychology of success. At the end of a very stimulating interview, the journalist asked if I would e-mail an answer to one final question: “What is your ultimate secret to success?”

After meditating for a while on my “ultimate secret of success,” I wrote something called the “Love Dedication.” This dedication appears in my book Success Intelligence. I thought it might be a good idea to share it again today, on Valentine's Day.


Before you dedicate your life
to a person, a marriage, a family;
to a corporation, a political party,
a peace campaign;
to a religion, a revolution, a
spiritual path;
make one other dedication first.
First dedicate yourself to LOVE.
Decide to let Love be your
intention, your purpose and
your point.
And then let Love inspire you,
support you, and guide you
in every other dedication
you make thereafter.

Success Intelligence: Your Real Work

On January 28th-30th, I co-facilitated with Ben Renshaw and Avril Carson a public workshop called Success Intelligence: Living a Life you Love. Approximately 50 people attended the workshop. They were from all walks of life including media, politics, art, health-care, education, and business. For three days, we immersed ourselves in a rich inquiry into the nature of authentic success.

In the week before the workshop, I came across some words attributed to Roger Ebert. They read: “What you do instead of your work is your real work.” These words made me stop in my tracks. I felt an uneasy sensation in my stomach. At the same time a loud “bong” sounded off inside my head, one like you hear at the start of a Universal Pictures movie. I used Roger’s words to do an on-the-spot inventory on my life. The first question on my inventory was: What is the real work of my life?

In the Success Intelligence workshop, I shared Roger Ebert’s words with the group. Together we embarked up on an inquiry into the real work of our lives. We all acknowledged that it is so easy in our manic society, with our busy lifestyles, and our hyperactive work cultures, to confuse busyness with purpose, adrenalin with wisdom, and activity with genuine accomplishment. And, therefore, the question What is the real work of my life? is imperative.

On the final afternoon of the 3-day workshop, we shared with each other our personal visions for what is our real work. The sharings were moving, emotional, honest, and inspiring. We were teachers to one another. And we all, in some way, gained courage, hope, and clarity about what is meaningful success, valuable success, and real success.

I invite you to take a few minutes to stop the work you are doing and inquire, What is the real work of my life? Think about not just your job of work, but also your family, YOU, your spiritual faith, and your life as a whole.

What is the real work of your life?


P.S. Due to the high interest in this workshop, we will be hosting another one later this year, in the Autumn. Dates will be announced shortly.