A number of weeks ago, I wrote the first post on hacking my own happiness. I participated in a study conducted at Harvard, and the result was a bunch of data collected from real-life about what made me happy. In the last article, I took a super-high-level look at the...

This is part one of my series of experiments on happiness using Track your Happiness, a “scientific research project that aims to use modern technology” to help you understand what makes you happy. It is the project of doctoral candidate Matt Killingsworth at Harvard University. During the course of many...

I’ve received a few requests for this post, so here it is: my approach to focus. It is not an end-all be-all solution for everybody, but rather a look at the key underlying ways you can keep yourself moving towards a task. The tricks here should work well for anybody,...

I’m not here to hawk any self-help products, yet like many book writers I will make the bold claim that I know the formula to success… and it is simple. Surprisingly simple — and widely overlooked or ignored.     I’m not saying that this formula will make you rich....

Nobody wants digital learning techniques (software, games etc.) to succeed more than me. I was formally trained in computer science and video game design, and readers of the blog know that neuroscience, human learning and foreign languages are all amongst my primary interests. I’ve even created a few iPhone apps...

I once read an article that called my generation the “Mr. Rogers’ Generation…” and it was not a compliment.   The author’s point was that our generation has a sense of entitlement that has not been earned. We have been told “you are special” so many times that we began...

When it comes to safety, appearances are much more important than fact. Thieves choose their victims based upon who looks like and easy mark.   I just landed in Lima, Peru last night and at no point did I feel at risk. Yet, many people warned me on my way...

No matter where I go in the world, I always know that sanity is just a plane flight away.   I tell people that I meet that I do not really have a “home” and that I move countries every 2-3 months. While this is true, if you look at...

Animals habituate to their environment, becoming acclimated to its difficulties over times, and we humans are no different. We can become used to difficult things, even so far as that they will no longer seem difficult.   To the left, you see my home for the last 8 days as...

Staying in shape as a traveler is a challenge: space, time, equipment and money are all of concern. It is hard to strictly manage a diet when you are at the whim of what you can find to eat, and don’t get me started on the extortionist prices charged my...