Take Yale’s Most Popular Class: ‘Happiness’ for FREE

So, don’t say this blog never offered you anything! 😉  How about I save you $69,000 and spare you from having to leave your computer to take Yale’s most popular course for free? Yes, free!  And what if said course examined HAPPINESS!?!  Isn’t this something we already know?  It may be, but the real question, is it being practiced? The course may challenge your preconception about happiness, and you may realize, you already have all you need to be happy.  You” also enjoy some ‘tools’ that everyone can use in everyday life.  I offer this up to The Stoney Lake Reflections audience as a ‘continuing education course’ for Storer Alumni & Friends!  Enrichment for my audience, a group of beautiful souls.

The Class

“The Science of Well-Being” taught by Professor Laurie Santos overviews what psychological science says about happiness. This course has received a ton of great press for good reason.  Participants learn about what psychological research says about what makes us happy AND puts those strategies into practice.  The course is taught by Dr. Laurie Santos, 42, a psychology professor and the head of one of Yale’s residential colleges.

Dr. Laurie Santos, Yale Univ.    Psychology

You may ask, why is Yale offering such a class and why do 1/4 of Yale’s student’s enroll?  In a recent interview with the New York Times, Professor Santos provided some insight as why students enroll in the class, “Students want to change, to be happier themselves, and to change the culture here on campus…With one in four students at Yale taking it, if we see good habits, things like students showing more gratitude, procrastinating less, increasing social connections, we’re actually seeding change in the school’s culture.”  In the same interview, Dr. Santos speculated that Yale students are interested in the class because, in high school, they had to deprioritize their happiness to gain admission to the school, adopting harmful life habits that have led to what she called “the mental health crises we’re seeing at places like Yale.” A 2013 report by the Yale College Council found that more than half of undergraduates sought mental health care from the university during their time there.

Students responded by signing up in bigger numbers than Yale school has ever seen, and now it’s going global and FREE to the Stoney Lake Reflections Audience.

What’s Covered?

• The first half of the course reveals misconceptions we have about happiness and the annoying features of the mind that lead us to think the way we do.

• The second half of the course focuses on activities that have been proven to increase happiness along with strategies to build better habits.

Enroll

Classes take place via the Coursera platform.  I have taken many self-paced classes through this platform and overall, I have found the courses well worthwhile.  That’s what makes this course stand out even more: This course is topical, popular AND FREE!

•  FREE  https://www.coursera.org/learn/the-science-of-well-being
• Classes begin April 30th
• Self-Paced
• Course Certificate is available for a fee, but you can take entire course for free.  See Coursera for full details on “The Science of Well-Being” taught by Professor Laurie Santos, Yale University.
• Coursera is also available in the Apple App Store or through Google Play

ENJOY!