Stumbling on Happiness

By: Daniel Gilbert

Narrated by: Daniel Gilbert

Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

A smart and funny book by a prominent Harvard psychologist, which uses groundbreaking research and (often hilarious) anecdotes to show us why we’re so lousy at predicting what will make us happy–and what we can do about it.

Most of us spend our lives steering ourselves toward the best of all possible futures, only to find that tomorrow rarely turns out as we had expected. Why? As Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert explains, when people try to imagine what the future will hold, they make some basic and consistent mistakes. Just as memory plays tricks on us when we try to look backward in time, so does imagination play tricks when we try to look forward. Using cutting-edge research, much of it original, Gilbert shakes, cajoles, persuades, tricks and jokes us into accepting the fact that happiness is not really what or where we thought it was.

Among the unexpected questions he poses: Why are conjoined twins no less happy than the general population? When you go out to eat, is it better to order your favourite dish every time, or to try something new? If Ingrid Bergman hadn’t gotten on the plane at the end of Casablanca, would she and Bogey have been better off?

Smart, witty, accessible and laugh-out-loud funny, Stumbling on Happiness brilliantly describes all that science has to tell us about the uniquely human ability to envision the future, and how likely we are to enjoy it when we get there.

©2006 Daniel Gilbert (P)2006 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Stumbling on Happiness is an absolutely fantastic book that will shatter your most deeply held convictions about how your own mind works. Ceaselessly entertaining, Gilbert is the perfect guide to some of the most interesting psychological research ever performed. Think you know what makes you happy? You won’t know for sure until you have read this book.”–Steven D. Levitt, author of Freakonomics

“Everyone will enjoy reading this book, and some of us will wish we could have written it. You will rarely have a chance to learn so much about so important a topic while having so much fun.”–Professor Daniel Kahneman, Princeton University, Winner of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Economics

“This is a brilliant book, a useful book, and a book that could quite possibly change the way you look at just about everything. And as a bonus, Gilbert writes like a cross between Malcolm Gladwell and David Sedaris.” –Seth Godin, author All Marketers Are Liars

will have to replay or re listen

I bought the book through audible. for the most part I enjoyed the book. but about 30% I didn't understand what he was talking about. It would have probably made more sense if I would read it instead or listening.

Great…….but

Great read or listen, very interesting review of experiment that she’d light on how we think and feel but… a few toooo many jokes.

Great Book!

Stumbling on Happiness is a must-hear. The author does a masterful job of explaining and summarizing scientific data on the topic of human happiness. He specifically does NOT promise to give you tools to become more happy; just to better understand why you aren’t. And while the book is certainly no how-to guide, I nonetheless found the information to be quite useful in figuring out how to increase my happiness quotient, and even more useful in figuring out key factors affecting the happiness of people I habitually interact with.

The author reads the book, and does a nice job. The style is breezy (but not simplistic) and fairly funny. It held my interest every minute.

Stumbling on a good book

I really wasn't in the mood to read this book but felt that it was something I needed to do. I thought it was going to be boring and hard to get through. I wanted to get it over with so I downloaded it and hit the play button.

Boy was I surprised.

This book turned out to be one of the best books I have listened to to date, and I've listened to a lot of books. Gilbert's writing is light, and easy to understand. His narration is great, too. He has a wonderful sense of humor and provides numerous examples to get his points across.

Gilbert talks about why our memories are so problematic, how narrow our perception of reality really are, and what makes us terrible predictors of our own happinesse. He shows how our present feelings influence memories of our past as well as our imagination of the future. He also talks about how self-deception, perceptions of regret, and freedom of choice can contribute to or undermine our happiness.

The book isn't meant to be a self-help book, but the understanding I gained, definitely helped me.
I loved this book and will probably listen to is several more times.

Entertaining psychology

Science of happiness! After listening, you will love the book or at least know that the reason you didn't is not due to the book's qualities, but due to your own imperfections, and that these imperfections are to your own advantage. This last part wasn't clear? Well, read the book, you'll understand. And the author does a great job entertaining you while telling you about his science!

Only 3 hours in to this book and I love it.

Dan Gilbert is an excellent narrator for his own book. The humor is an added bonus and really helps. Got this book because Mark Manson (The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck) recommended it as a read. Very similar to his book. Entertaining and captivating. After 3 hours I couldn't stop listening but had to. This book is NOT about how to be happy. It's about the human brain perceives happiness and the science behind it. Very good examples used in the book.

Very intriguing

An interesting take of definition of happiness ... definitely recommend to anyone who has time on their hands ..

Great read

Very dense, in a good way. Makes you think. Hop in to change some of perspectives. I'll be rereading it soon!

Brilliant and funny with important information.

I love the author's frequent use of the word 'alas', that word is so underutilized in our world today. The dry humor of this book is hilarious as well.

An ABSOLUTE Must Listen!

Smart, witty and extremely interesting.

One of the best books I’ve ever listened to about the human psychology and the ineptness of forecasting the future. I wish Mr. Gilbert would author another book!

5 stars all the way around.