How to be happy - Liz Hoggard

Making Slough Happy is made by award-winning independent production company Optomen, with prime-time programming on BBC2, transmitting in November 2005.

One of the boldest social experiments ever undertaken, this unique television event brings happiness experts from all fields and gives them just four months to make the town of Slough happy.

A fact: Although genes and upbringing influence about 50% of our happiness, circumstances (income, living environment) only affects 10%. The remaining 40% is accounted for by our outlook on life, something we all have the power to change for the better.

A simple happiness exercise: keep a diary and once a week write in it things for which you are thankful over the past week. Thats it. This is a simple but effective technique people who did it over 6 weeks reported a significant increase in their sense of happiness and satisfaction.

Published against the series, How to be Happy combines the very latest research with advice and exercises from the experts to give you the truth about happiness and practical ways to increase your own happiness quota.