Israeli App Will Make Happiness a Habit

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‘Happy Things is a digital framework that teaches people how to practice (happiness) and provides them with a tool to do so daily.’

By Shula Rosen, United with Israel

The phrase “Pursuit of happiness” in the US Declaration of Independence expressed the idea that happiness is not just a passing mood but something that can be sought and developed.

The new Israeli startup Happy Things expresses this point of view, which encourages users to develop small habits that can help them pursue happiness.

Israel, despite October 7th and the ensuing war, was ranked in the top 5 happiest countries in the world.

A main ingredient is resilience, a quality that can be developed through practice.

Happy Things CEO and co-founder Talia Soen said the idea behind Happy Things began with her personal desire to have a more positive outlook on life.

“I had this feeling that I’m not happy enough and that something is missing in my life, and I kept on searching for ways and solutions for a happier life,” she told ISRAEL21c.

“I came across the methodology of positive psychology, a relatively new school of psychology, unlike more classic schools focusing on the negative and helping people get back to what’s considered the norm,” she explains.

Instead, she explains that positive psychology begins with the goal–by looking at happy people, studying what they do to be happy and developing habits and practices that will contribute to happiness.

So why not just do a few things that make you happy or adjust your outlook?

Talia Soen found that most people need external reinforcement to maintain habits that instill a feeling of well-being.

The app provides this external reinforcement with reminders and feedback about day-to-day activities.

Soen explained, “Happy Things is a digital framework that teaches people how to practice and provides them with a tool to do so daily. It’s a bit like Duolingo, just for happiness.”

After raising funds from Fusion, Happy Things already has 1,200 users and offers a month free to Israelis.

Our platform takes thousands of pieces of research and turns them into short, easy activities. These can be practiced in five minutes a day, on the go, without needing to plan ahead,” she explains.

“These can include anything from listening to a song that brings up a happy memory, complimenting someone or calling a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while, to going on 10-minute walk or thinking about three good things that happened this week.”

With time, the app “gets to know” the user and can create more tailored reminders and feedback.

“That way, it will be able to provide users what’s best for them in terms of preferences, family situation, hormonal status, work schedule and lots of things that the system will be able to take into account,” Soen said.