About Robert Holden

Robert Holden, PhD, the London-based director of The Happiness Project and author of Be Happy, has been studying the psychology of happiness for 15 years, and his extensive research has unearthed one simple truth: Happiness is a choice. Dr. Holden's workshops, which use daily exercises to teach people the fine art of achieving, following and practicing joy, have garnered the attention of media powerhouses like BBC TV and Oprah. Perhaps more impressively, his techniques have been scrutinized by the scientific community, which has determined that Dr. Holden's project can indeed change the way the brain functions; it also has been shown to reduce stress and decrease blood pressure.

Although Dr. Holden has become a veritable glee guru in his own right, his life wasn't always so joyful. As a child, he was raised amidst the chaos of depression and alcoholism. Periodically, his mother unexpectedly took to her bed for weeks at a time and his father drank so heavily that he eventually left the family home and spent the remainder of his life on the streets. "The pain that my mom and dad went through somersaulted me forward into a major inquiry," he says. "When I was 15 or 16, when it was really cool to be playing sports or in a rock band, I started asking all the big questions such as, 'Who are we?' and 'What is life for?'"

Today, Dr. Holden has answered these questions in his own way. He's deciphered that true happiness doesn't need to be chased or caught or sought-nor is it reserved for the lucky, the wealthy or the worthy. In fact, happiness may just be the true human condition.

"Happiness isn't an it, a thing or a destination," he explains. "I don't even think it's a state of mind. I really think that happiness is our true nature, it's who we are when we're letting ourselves be." Or, phrased more succinctly, "Happiness is who we are minus our neuroses."

Dr. Holden is also the author of the best-selling books Happiness NOW!, Shift Happens! and Success Intelligence. His latest book, Be Happy (2009, Hay House paperback edition $16.95), gives virtually a front-row seat for his unique program. For more information, you can visit http://www.behappy.net/ or http://www.robertholden.org/