Vital Architecture and the New Design of Happiness

"Vital Architecture and the New Design of Happiness" takes a fresh look at what real happiness is and how people can live in that happiness. The book begins by describing how happiness is experienced by two different camps of people--the old-designers, who base their happiness on how they feel, and the new-designers, who base their happiness on the elements of happiness they possess regardless of how they feel. A strong case is made for adopting the new design with its five elements: interpersonal, physical, mental, vocational, and financial contentment.

Where problems separate people from these elements, the author introduces a solution-building system (Vital Architecture) that allows the reader to solve those problems. An entire section is dedicated to each element of happiness, and each section ends with an exercise designed to illustrate how Vital Architecture can be used to solve a major problem associated with it.

Throughout the book, a central theme is reiterated: How a person feels has nothing to do with their happiness. Instead, pursuing the elements of happiness, regardless of feelings, leads one to greater personal power, greater freedom, and a stronger moral character. Essentially, using Vital Architecture moves one into the new design of happiness, and they become happy rather than waiting to feel happy. This, the author suggests, has profound implications for the individual as a human being as well as the world that surrounds him or her.