This week’s must-reads: You’re Not Meant to Be Happy … and that’s a Good Thing

In my work as a behavioral designer, I come across important stories on how psychology influences our behavior. Every week, I share my round-up of the most important stories at the intersection of psychology, technology and business. I hope you enjoy them!

You’re Not Meant to Be Happy … and That’s a Good Thing (Medium) Happiness is temporary but the pursuit of our values provides long-lasting benefits.

A new study has found being angry increases your vulnerability to misinformation (PsyPost) Human memory is prone to error — and new research provides evidence that anger can increase these errors.

We Track Steps & Calories for our Health. Why Don’t we Track our Drinks, Too? (Elephant Journal) Setting ourselves up for healthier drinking habits is one of the most game-changing choices we can make to improve our overall health.

Is Social Media Hijacking Our Minds? (Pairagraph) I debate Dr. Anna Lembke and take the position that no, social media is not hijacking our minds and it is disempowering to say it is.

WhatsApp Has Shared Your Data with Facebook for Years, Actually (WIRED) A pop-up notification has alerted the messaging app’s users to a practice that’s been in place since 2016.

How to Take Back Control of Your Workday … and Your Life (Ultimate Injury Law) We all face distractions during the workday. The only question is what can you do to avoid the distractions.

Happy reading!

- Nir