Member-only story
To Increase Your Happiness, Focus on Your ‘Near Misses’
Research suggests there’s power in reflecting on the what ifs
The words that changed my outlook came from, of all places, a presentation on workplace safety at my new job. “Always report the near misses,” the facilitator said, as a slide showed a couple of boxes falling off a forklift and narrowly missing the man standing underneath it.
When I saw the image, I flinched. But then I thought, “Wow, lucky guy.”
This past year has been a string of near misses for me. My sister, a doctor, tested positive for Covid-19 but had an asymptomatic case. Soon after switching jobs, I learned that my former company would be shuttering due to the pandemic. Just recently, I narrowly escaped what could have been a bad champagne-cork-to-the-eye accident.
These near misses stirred up all sorts of emotions: fear, guilt, relief. But when I thought back over them, one truth rose above everything else: I’m so damn blessed.
When we want to remind ourselves how good our lives are, we often only look to the positives. But this might not be the best strategy for increasing our happiness. While remembering a positive event can make us feel good, research published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology suggests that we might…
