The New Happiness – Practices For Spiritual Growth And Living With Intention

Matthew McKay, PhD, is a professor at the Wright Institute in Berkeley, CA. He has authored and coauthored numerous books, including The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook, and The Relaxation and Stress Reduction Workbook. Jeffrey C. Wood, PsyD, lives and works in Las Vegas, NV. He specializes in brief therapy treatments for depression, anxiety, and trauma. Steven C. Hayes, PhD, is Nevada Foundation Professor in the department of psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno.

“This is an uplifting and valuable book for anyone who has been wondering how they might create more happiness in their life. The authors’ ingeniously practical advice is to identify a life purpose and start a practice of engaging in simple spiritual practices. From the onset, it is very clear that this is not a book about spiritual beliefs or a particular belief system. Instead, the book uses new and proven psychological principles to help seekers identify a unique life purpose for themselves, live from the heart with intention, and deal with barriers to spiritual practice with compassion. Although the book is very practical, it is by no means superficial. It does not shy away from ‘deeper issues’ such as impermanence, finding a state of grace –– that beautiful state of calm contentment –– and bringing spirit into daily life. By focusing on practice rather than theory or philosophy, the authors endeavor to help readers achieve a goal that many readers might have always viewed as too lofty or unachievable. This book provides hope and gives actionable advice in a personally meaningful area where really concrete and useful information is often hard to come by. I agree with the promise at the end of the book that the practices learned in this book will help readers keep Spirit alive—‘in you and through you.’” — Georg H. Eifert, PhD, Chapman University professor emeritus of psychology, and coauthor of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety

“This rare and uniquely practical book offers enormous wisdom and guidance for anyone — spiritual or not, religious or not — seeking a deeper sense of meaning, purpose, and joy in their lives. The New Happiness will awaken you to your inner truth, your purpose in being here, and help you create the conditions for genuine happiness on your life journey.” — John P. Forsyth, PhD, professor, and coauthor of Anxiety Happens and The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety

“Get ready for a unique experience with spirituality. There are plenty of spiritual books preaching what to believe. This book defines spirituality as the process of ‘doing’ rather than the process of ‘believing’. The authors focus on our behavior as the expression of our spirituality. So rather than ‘talk’ or argue about different faiths — who is right or wrong — this book is about helping you to use your spirituality as guidelines for making daily choices and acting in valued directions. The book presents fresh definitions of spirituality followed by practical guidelines, along with how to deal with obstacles while moving in valued directions, and finally a section helping the reader with a deeper understanding how spirituality can be expressed in daily life — for example, with compassion. The authors present you with lots of practical exercises. One I particularly like was called ‘Morning Intention,’ which combines a morning routine like making tea with a reminder of a valued intention for the day, as a way of preparing for valued living. Today, most psychotherapists or people dealing with people are including spirituality, and this book will provide you with a great palette of concepts and ways to practice doing that.” — JoAnne Dahl, PhD, professor in the department of psychology at Uppsala University in Uppsala, Sweden; licensed psychologist; psychotherapist; peer-reviewed acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) trainer; and Association for Contextual Behavioral Science fellow

“In a world full of loss, fear, and uncertainty, working to find our deepest purpose through connecting to inner wisdom and our spiritual core is of utmost importance; it is the path to wiser choices and a fulfilling life. In Matthew McKay and Jeffrey Woods’ book, the reader is guided on a spiritual journey designed to create awareness to choice, and to great clarity about personal values in the service of growth and sustaining a spiritual environment — leading us to our true meaning. In this short but beautiful, wildly painful, blissfully amazing life, The New Happiness is a welcome promise for spiritual development and connection to love and all that matters in life.” — Robyn D. Walser, PhD, author of The Heart of ACT, coauthor of Learning ACT and The Mindful Couple, and assistant professor at the University of California, Berkeley