Happiness Smoothing

When you see people who are struggling in life, you probably feel an urge to help. You might talk yourself out it, because you have your own problems, or you don’t know how to help in any lasting way, or there are just too many people in need. But you have the urge to help those less fortunate. It’s in your DNA. You’re good people.

On the flip side, when you see people who are happier than you, your natural urge is to guide them back to the average. For example, if you have a coworker who breezes through his own workload and uses the spare time to enjoy himself, your natural impulse is to ruin his day by dumping some of your work on him. You call it “teamwork,” and there’s no denying it boosts productivity, but that’s not your motivation. At some fundamental human level, you want the people who are happier than you to dial it back a notch. It’s in your DNA. Sometimes you’re not good people.

In my corporate career, I had a happy coworker who taught me how to defend against this tendency in others to thwart the happiness around them. With people he trusted, he revealed his happiness, and flaunted the fact that his job was easy and stress free. But when anyone outside the inner circle approached, he started complaining like a pirate caught in a steel trap. He had lots of old-timey phrases like “up to my ass in alligators” and “stomping out fires” and “slogging through the swamp.” To hear him tell it, life was one long turd sandwich. Each misery led to the next. He would keep it up until the threat of teamwork passed. By the time he was done with you, all you wanted to do was help this poor bastard any way you could. I was slow to adopt this method, but soon learned it was the only way to protect my little nugget of happiness. It was a godsend.

For the first six years of my cartooning career, I kept my full-time job at the phone company. I told people it was for the money, or the stimulation, or the fodder. Those factors were important, but the main reason was to disguise my happiness. I knew that if did nothing but happily doodle for a few hours every day, and got paid, the thwarters would come out in droves. I told people I worked seven days a week, and every holiday (which was true), but it wasn’t as painful as it sounds. It turns out that as soon as you don’t need to be working for financial reasons, the stress of your job dissolves, and it starts feeling a lot like a hobby.

In retrospect, I think my perceived pain is what helped make my first book, The Dilbert Principle, a #1 best seller. It was a humorous book about my workplace unhappiness, and people reflexively wanted to help lift me up to the average happiness. so they bought my book. The book got great reviews, but there are plenty of good books that don’t become best sellers. My story had just the right amount of pain to put people on my side.

Lately, as a semi-famous cartoonist, it has become harder to appear unhappy to others. 99.99% of the world would switch jobs with me if they had the chance. Now the most common comment I get when I mention my new book on this blog is “Aren’t you rich enough already?” My perceived happiness is working against me. Humans aren’t wired to make happy people happier. We’re wired to bring happy people back to the average.

With that in mind, I have modified my marketing for my new book. First, I should point out that researchers have discovered that people’s happiness has a “set point” that doesn’t change much no matter the external circumstances. So buying my book won’t make me any happier in the long run. (I’m fairly certain that’s true.)

Second, consider what happens with every dollar that goes to me at this point in my life. I live an embarrassingly modest lifestyle. No yachts, no second homes. I dress like a blind hobo most of the time. My biggest extravagance is using a new can of balls twice a week when I play tennis. So an extra dollar for me will help fund the 401K for some guy who puts the fuzz on Dunlop tennis balls. (That’s an actual job.)

At this point in my life, realistically, every incremental dollar I make will flow to fellow citizens who would otherwise be below the average happiness level. I have enough money for my own purposes, unless I start buying golden slippers for the cat. So rest assured that if you buy my book, STICK TO DRAWING COMICS, MONKEY-BRAIN! your money will not contribute to my happiness in the least. But it will flow through me and indirectly help a wide variety of wretched souls who are below average in happiness. You could give money to the needy directly, but then you wouldn’t have my book to read. You deserve a little something for your kindness.

I pay the maximum tax rate. I have no mortgage deductions, no tax shelters. Over 40% of my earnings go to fund your Social Security, provide valuable services for children and the elderly, and make our men and women in uniform safer. But if you don’t think any of those people deserve more happiness, just forget I brought it up.

Did that work?

Book link:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591841852?ie=UTF8&tag=dilbertcom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1591841852

Comments

[Rebecca]

Well, there is relief in laughing about something that is irritating to you. And since you captured the workplace so well, you have offered a tremendous amount of relief from just that first book!

[listo comics]

ok, ok, i buy it

[Phil Donahew]

I make more money than most of my friends and family and I have noticed that when I am unhappy it seems to be less real to them than it used to be. I'm glad I am not alone in noticing this phenomenon. The song "We Hate it When Our Friends Become Successful" by Morrissey comes to mind.

[Neha]

Sounds like you're begging for people to buy your book. I thought you were more popular than to need to do that!

Anyway, I'd rather buy a book which helped all those other people you mentioned and also helped the guy who wrote the book, and since you dont need that, its a pass from me :D

[Darren]

I bought the book. Ordered it from Amazon the day you flogged it in the DNRC newsletter.
Some of the most entertaining stuff I've read in a while.
My wife constantly asks me what so funny about when I'm reading bits in the evening.
It was bought to make you happy.

I bought it because it seemed exceptionally likely that the content would be closer to the content in the newsletter which is frequently more entertaining than your actual cartoon because of your ability to cover a wide breadth of a topic than is possible in three panels and the 6-8 sentence fragments than can be fit into a cartoon.

[Zubair Hasan]

You write amazingly well sir. I learn a lot reading your blog. Thank you :)

[Nicole]

When I see people who are much happier than I am, I feel as though I have nothing valuable to give to them. If you have nothing useful to give to someone who's already happy, it can be like you don't even exist or aren't important. When the happy person leaves the room, you exist again.

But it's only certain types of happy people who make me feel this way. Some happy people are the "you don't exist" types. But other people's happy vibes are different - they're happy, and the good feelings just spread around the whole room and everybody's welcome.

[Sreeram]

Still waiting for the pirated copy of your book to hit the streets.. I will definitely pick up one of those. :)

[James]

Your job is to make people happy. You made me happy by thinking that you were sad because you aren't doing your job right. Eh, you can now be happy know that. Also, I feel bad about stealing your book now, so I'm going to read a little bit of it to cheer myself up again.

[Jess]

But Scott, I don't buy your books to make you happy. I buy them to make ME happy :p

Nice spin, however. I respect your methods :p

[CubicleAnimal]

Hey Scott,
Did you post this post a while ago, especially the "happy coworker" part, or am I dreaming?

[Simon]

Apparently, I'm a bad person.

[Joe Blow]

I would be very interested in the economics of such a book. Things like time to market, costs, margins, profits, profiteers, who has what influences. Perhaps you're willing to spend some time in the blog on that one of these days.

What does one need to do to get you to endorse or do the preface/intro of a book? Perhaps to get you to cowrite/publish? Nothing like a completed book where you just add your name to it to make a few bucks. Hell it could even be a good book. Is there (lots) money in that?

Thank you for your consideration,
JB

[Bill Tkach]

Why don't you just make it one of those "30% of the profits of this book will go to help furless lemurs in the Arctic" campaigns. People eat that stuff like melted chocolate on a ice cream Popsicle. (why does that sound dirty?)

Speaking of furless lemurs, I'm sure you could work that in with the seal clubbing. I mean, we need to club those seals up here in Canada, otherwise they'd take over. But we could make nice little lemur coats out of that spotlessly white fur. Paints a pretty picture eh? Thousands of furless lemurs, running towards the edge of a cliff, wearing these bar-star poofy white jackets?

[Steve]

// But you have the urge to help those less fortunate //

I don't. I mean, I don't really have the urge to drag them down, either, but when it comes to strangers? No urge to help. Might feel bad for them if they seem like decent folks, but I've got more than enough of my own problems.

When it comes to happy people, it's only the dicks who've screwed me over that I want to drag down, and I don't just want them to be "average happy," I want them to suffer in abject misery, as much as possible.

What's that do to your theory now? :)

[The (Amazing) Gimme A Buck Guy]

This post reminds me of the article I wrote about how giving me your money will actually help stimulate the world economy:

http://www.gimmeabuck.com/articles/currency_tutorial.html

So far, I think you're happiness level might be a little more then mine, although perhaps one day I'll reach the same plateau.

Cheers!

[Muthu Ramadoss]

You are the best. But I'm still not buying it. Its too much of a trouble for me living in chennai, ordering from amazon.

May be, just may be if and when i walk my local book store and the monkey brain catches my eye.. I might buy it. Just for you, just for this post :)

[Pender]

Totally agree with you on the average happy idea. I hate listening to overly cheerful people at work, mostly because I hate my job. I also enjoy the look they get on their faces when they are given an assload of meaningless work. I keep my happiness to myself to avoid the same fate thus maintaining my level of happy unchecked.

To be honest though, I don't think about the author's happiness when I buy books. I think about my happiness in owning said book. Call me selfish.

As to your book, I'd consider buying it if they had it at my local bookstore. I like to peruse before I buy, and Amazon doesn't give you enough of a glipse.

I hope you decided to omit from your book the postings from your "fans" that go on about how your a capitalist pig, and that you should pay THEM to read your blog/comic/book. Who needs to read that drek?

[Backpacking on Little Money]

Hi Scott,

This is the kind of stuff that nobody posts, and it's the best single piece of advice I've learned in the past three or five years. I'm buying a dozen of your books now. Thank you.

[Steven McDaniel]

Thankyou for your navel gazing ad

[WATYF]

HAHA... wow... I can't believe I do this and didn't even know it. The truth is, I love my job... it's extremely stress-free, I have loads of down-time, I get to do something I enjoy (and would actually do in my free-time), and my coworkers are all nice to me (because they all know they'll need me for something at some point).

...but whenever someone walks up to my desk or calls and asks what's up, I just go on about how swamped I am and how it's just one problem after another and how I can't wait to get out of here and blah blah blah. I've never really thought about exactly why I do that... maybe just to fit in with what people in corporate America expect of casual office conversation... maybe to dissuade people from asking me to do more... but whatever my reasons were subconsciously... apparently they were good ones.

Outside of work, I'm constantly "bragging" about how I've got such a cake job and what not, but I've never, ever thought of telling any of my coworkers that. Now I'll be sure never to tell *anyone* how much I enjoy my job... that could ruin everything. :o)

[Zach]

Sorry Scott, but I only pay for things that go to people who increase their happiness by spending frivolously. In fact, I base my decision on who to give money to (in your case, buying a book, or traveling the 10 miles to eat at stacey's) on whether or not I will later get unexpected entertainment out of it.

For example, I buy albums and go to concerts for rock stars who I think will OD or be killed in some interesting and/or creepy way. If they're likely to have a tour bus covered in syphilis (trying to) follow a Lamborghini from venue to venue all the better. From everyone else whose music I like I just copy my friend's cd, or download it.

In your case I can read this stuff for free, and the articles you post now are as good (or better) than what's in the book. Even better, I get to see people misinterpret and get angry over some hypothetical idea you don't even care about. So start injecting the crack rock or whatever it is the kids are doing these days and you'll reap great rewards. People love that sort of thing.

[WATYF]

HAHA... wow... I can't believe I do this and didn't even know it. The truth is, I love my job... it's extremely stress-free, I have loads of down-time, I get to do something I enjoy (and would actually do in my free-time), and my coworkers are all nice to me (because they all know they'll need me for something at some point).

...but whenever someone walks up to my desk or calls and asks what's up, I just go on about how swamped I am and how it's just one problem after another and how I can't wait to get out of here and blah blah blah. I've never really thought about exactly why I do that... maybe just to fit in with what people in corporate America expect of casual office conversation... maybe to dissuade people from asking me to do more... but whatever my reasons were subconsciously... apparently they were good ones.

Outside of work, I'm constantly "bragging" about how I've got such a cake job and what not, but I've never, ever thought of telling any of my coworkers that. Now I'll be sure never to tell *anyone* how much I enjoy my job... that could ruin everything. :o)

[Arthur]

It worked!!I felt an urge to open the link!

[David MacMillan]

This theory only works on people who are inherently depraved and enjoy seeing other people suffer.

Wait - that's the vast majority of unregenerate human beings.

Good luck!

[SiggeLund]

Lol, you PIG :D This was one of the better sales pitches I've heard so far! Sell the book in Sweden and I'll help fund an american hobo or two. :)

[bvb]

I still disagree with your "average happy" assertion. But if it makes you much happier to feel you're right, that's OK with me. I should have inserted a "very" adverb in my original post. Of course, if everyone was very happy, then very happy would be average. I guess it's not possible for everyone to be above average because that would then be average. Let's just keep raising the happiness average...

-------------------------------------------------------
I think it sad that you think nobody wants others to be happy. (I also think you are wrong - but I hope that doesn't make you sad.)

[We want others to be average happy. -- Scott]

[Dilbert's Rabbi]

Now I feel obligated to buy this book. I know I won't buy it until it's gone out of print (that's the way I buy books - I just bought a copy of Atlas Shrugged for $2). But now I feel guilty about procrastinating and depriving our economy of Scott's "trickle down" - so to speak.

How can I deal with this guilt? I could just buy the book... I think, instead, I'll just stop reading this blog.

[Ryan Hanlon]

I normally do not comment on posts but I have to say the dilbert cartoon on your website today (11/8/07) probably the funniest thing ever. Totally reminded me of my job...but I guess that is the point...

[A Wart]

Scott,
Spend, spend, spend, us poor geeks need a hero someone who lavishes thier cash on wine and floozies!. All the normal people have rock and roll heros and film stars who never let them down. Bill Gates is a big let down, we want to dream, if we strive in our misrable little jobs we could become the Geek Father and get the bling and the girls. So for our sakes drop the dunlop furry balls and go for the dancing beaver make us happy with your indulgence. Pimp up your cat.

[neopolitan]

I wonder if this is a good time to raise the topic of intellectual property again?

For instance, if someone wanted to download a free pdf version of your book, they could visit www.adamsnape.ru/monkeybrain.html. They could get the relevant file, do a search for their nick and possibly save themselves a few bucks. Since they are really only interested to see if they made into the book, these cheapskates may even buy the book if they got a mention. In this way, pirates will be helping you make sales.

Now, is anyone ready to scan the book and put it in a torrent for us? For those of you who can't read, there are 11 hours of some Dufus reading it for you. No link for that one, Scott?

cheers,

neopolitonian

(Chances of this being posted ... perhaps a little less than 50-50% I would say, unless you are not Scott or one of his cronies, in which case the chances are 100% Ain't statistics fun!)

[Podders]

Ai, hombre, if more people thought like you the world would be a much better place.
Now if you were to lend me the money to buy the book we could have a deal.

[Marklar]

The second STDCMB might have somewhat less interesting content, as a lot of it will be asking readers to buy the first book.

[Rach]

You sound like a Miss.Universe contestant.

[Charley]

__________________________________

Perfect! (Except for the "Did that work?" question at the end, but I guess that was included for those who get bitten on the nose, or elsewhere, by unrecognisable entities)

[Tony]

I am waiting for it to go to the bargain books pile at waldens. LOL

[Felix]

no way I'm going to increase the level of happiness of some american bureaucrat. I'll just read the texts and view the comics for free. That will increase my happiness given by the spare time, and you yanks will get nothing from me.
did your happiness go lower just a tiny bit?

[Mark]

http://science.slashdot.org/science/07/11/07/2340255.shtml

DMD is redundant!

[GLK]

Despite your ‘shameless exploitation in pursuit of the common good’ theme there is positively no doubt in my mind that your observations regarding human behavioral characteristics toward individual happiness are right on the money. It’s the herd mentality that if a bunch of us are unhappy and you’re not, then there’s something wrong with YOU and we’ll stop at nothing until you realize the error of your ways and become like us. People don’t like to admit it, but maintaining optimism is an uphill and mostly thankless climb.

[T.G.]

It is since sometime that I read your blog regularly and my conclussion is that in overall you are not really that happy, average at most. So I have the urge to gift someone with your new book, hehehehe.

Sorry for posting twice.

[Shaka]

Sold! Not the book, the method.

I shall not be buying the book because I'm miserable and poor.

Anyone wanting to aid me in my quest to better myself, please send me a small donation.

[Ondrej Mitas]

The set point hypothesis has been largely discredited. It's true for many people much of the time, including lottery winners and many people who become disabled. It isn't consistently true, for example, for people who get married.

[aussie nick]

You are assuming money makes you happy...

[wernman]

No that didn't work. But I'm happy for you that you're more successful than me. It's OK to be successful, and it's even OK to enjoy it. I'm happy for people when I see them living up to full potential or calling that God created them for. I think He loves it, too.

Christianity's about dying to yourself, and if we're not happy for someone else when they got something we wanted, then that's a character flaw to work on.

[Ron Hardin]

If you take your increased earnings in cash and just burn it, it actually flows back to the US Treasury.

The Fed notices that the money supply is a little low and prints more, which the government then spends, helping out those same little people.

This is also good for wills.

[Chrisy]

Would you possibly consider the possibility of a chance to maybe, just maybe STUFF IT ABOUT YOUR BOOK!
That would be greatly appreciated.

[Väike televaataja]

Somebody here had a great idea that you should write a new book about current blog entries, that is write a book about selling another book.
I got even a better idea. What if you finish with trying to sell the old book and start with selling that new book now? That is, you will be selling a book which is actually about selling the same book(about selling a book(about selling a book(about...)))

[Mark]

This'll cheer you up, Scott.

You're wrong. 40% of your earnings do NOT go to pay for other USians' social security etc. I don't know what the bands are, but some of your earnings are paid out at 0% (I.e. nothing). Some is paid out at the standard rate of tax. Some at a higher rate and so on up to the earnings over $X,000 being taken at 40%. Total is LESS THAN 40%.

And you're trying to set yourself up as a hero when in actual fact, all you're doing is paying by the rules (misspelling appropriate!) which, WHEN COMPARED TO OTHERS in the same situation is better than them. That doesn't make you a hero.

If I were to be surrounded by people who behead cats, I'm not a hero because I don't. To become a hero, I have to protect the cats. For you to be a hero, you'd have to work to make sure that others earning loads don't scam the system.

An in any case, you find you can live comfortably on less than the ammount you get paid (even paying full tax) so you've realised that there's no POINT to paying someone to reduce your tax burden. Doing so merely means you're not spending even more money you don't spend already. That does make you more intelligent than those who are paid lots but still try to keep more of it, because they don't realise that if they didn't bother, they would still have a comfortable lifestyle and because of the tax coming in, the rates would be able to come down a lot. In fact, it could probably go to a flat rate (over the minimum wage being 100% tax free).

Unless your government are greedy, in which case you can vote them out.

[Tatter]

Nice entry. If I were closer you would be getting a warm, yet manly pat on the back.

Have you ever thought of publishing one of your talks on DVD? I saw one on YouTube and I would love to see a full talk.

Not sure if it would sell, it's not like you could hawk your wares any...., oh yeah right :)

[chimpu]

Scott,

Scot you are a classic victim of cognitive dissonance and confusion. A part of you is socialist and feels guilty of living a happy life while millions suffer and another part of you is a bloody capitalist (may be the country you live in has influenced this part).

This post is a classic case of that bloody capitalist manifesting himself as a joker using socialism as a prop…..pity you my friend….get some clarity in thought….meditation might help!!

How about:
1. 100% of my book proceeds will go to such and such clarity – here the link to track the charity.
2. this book is for free – you can download it here ….. heres also a link to this charity which I support…please help the needy

Remember – all things that matter are for free. Only material manmade things demand manmade price /money. Intellectual property is a dead concept anyway….long live the universal-fundamental-void, which of course if for free, but mate….you got to raise from your cozy delusions to realise it.

Cheers

[Fred]

I don't earn that much but I pay 40 per cent tax on my income. I also pay National Insurance which is just another income tax to fund the welfare system. Then there are all the indirect taxes such as value added tax (purchase tax) at 17.5 per cent on just about everything except food and all the other "hiden taxes". Not content with that you now want me to fund the US government as well as the UK government! No!

[Oli]

For those of you in the UK or Europe who want to buy STICK TO DRAWING COMICS, MONKEY-BRAIN! you can get it at http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.co.uk%2FStick-Drawing-Comics-Monkey-Brain%2Fdp%2F1591841852%3Fie%3DUTF8%26s%3Dbooks%26qid%3D1194516759%26sr%3D8-1&tag=gamers06-21&linkCode=ur2&camp=1634&creative=6738
with £5 (33%!) off.

Now Scott you can allow or disallow this link, but remember by allowing this link people will Perceive that your overall happiness has gone down, while infact you may be making more money than you would have done otherwise, actually increasing your Actual happiness, which would also be boosted by the fact that you helped a young office worker get a few pounds together for a pint or two tonight.

So overall you get shot of the whiners and can sit back with a smile on your face.

I dont see how me doing this can be taken any other way than a win-win situation.

[e-mino]

Scott,

It's true that you lose sympathy as you get more famous. "He's got enough money already", "he's well known already", "it was better in the old days", etc. That's a phenomenon you have to deal with (I believe it's called jealousy).

But, this set aside, I still don't get it why you feel the need to keep on plugging your book so often.

We can now set aside money reasons, since you admit yourself that you have enough of it already.

So why do it ?

Addiction ?

Lust for fame ?

Scare of failure ?

A bet with your editor ?

You desperately want to outsell the latest Harry Potter ?

Why, Scott, why ? Tell us !

P.S. On a totally random note [plugging mode on], do check this post on my blog in order to find out "How to commit the perfect murder" (here : http://e-mino.blogspot.com/2007/11/how-to-commit-perfect-murder.html) (something bored billionaires like yourself might enjoy ! ;-) ) [plugging mode off].

[Chris]

How about rewarding your fans who are dedicated enough to visit your blog regularly by not spamming us about your book?

If I wanted to watch ads, I'd flick on the television.

[Noumenon]

Why is everyone complaining that Scott is advertising the book on this blog? He wrote the book on this blog. Just as the book is in stores now, this post will be showing up verbatim in the advertising section of Parade magazine, probably in very tiny type.

[DL From Heidelberg]

Abe Lincoln said (I'm paraphrasing... "dissent is the highest form of..." no wait, that was Kos) a man is as happy as he makes up his mind he wants to be. Scott, be happy. You may believe its related to your success but when you learn where the source is, and I suspect you have, the tennis balls don't matter.

[fan]

good one scott. u've brought me upto average.

[Flemming]

Turd sandwich?!? Never tried one of those.....

[Xavier]

I see what you did there.

You. You're good you.

[Arturo]

How much do you get for each book? I think if I bought your book a large slice would go to book publishers who'd just waste it. I should give my money as directly as possible to the needy.

So....how much? Who gets what?

[Tyler]

Trickle down happiness. Sounds good, I'll take two books please.

[rd]

oops, the initiated
though initialized may be more suitable for avatars
sounds just identical to me

[Gissi J.]

i surrender... you have convinced me to get the book
Good Job Scott :)

[bark313]

Holy crap! You are a good salesperson!!!
I think I will buy your book.

[himanshu]

i am sure someone pointed it out before......
we never buy a book cause we want to pay something or support the author, or even the publishing company.

we buy books cause we like whats written inside them.

so even if i know that bill gates is the richest and maybe the happiest person on earth, i will still buy his software if i need it.

[ComidaDos]

Scott, why do you assume people are too lazy and stupid to read your book for free at the internet archive?(http://web.archive.org)

[rd]

cat golden slippers extravaganza..
if i was a mighty multimillionaire and an atheist who does not believe in afterlife and whose philosophy is fully enjoy life in the present
i would definitely try space travel, altruism aside
it's pity i can't in this lifetime ;)
well, 'habits are given to substitute happiness' said the great poet, so that'll do fine for me
but for you, on the contrary, it may be so an available option
what, you live only once :P
if you have all means to do that, why not
a rationale:
you are healthy, fit and young, mean, in right physical shape to fly, you can afford it, you'll try top experience of science and technology, your money will go to the space science development, a good cause, you'll get a life-time of space stories and perceptions to describe for other curious MoRos
you'll inspire millions around the world with your success, you'll easily write another book to get those millions back etc etc

just the potential downfall could be that
nothing would be left for you to want any more

or else you could try other marketing ploy for your book - make your book very hard to buy, find, get
declare it exclusive and limited edition something
and for only the initiated people
something like that iphone - only two in one hand socdef policy
playing on another human nature to want more
the unobtainable etc etc etc

am i a random crazy idea generator or what

[thetigress]

I live overseas so your tales of high tax and benefits mean zip.
Also I buy things to increase MY happiness, I dont particularly care if it makes you richer or not.
How does that fit the theory then?

[Ricky]

I bought 2 copies when you first mentioned it. Now you're making me ordering two more copies.

[Bob]

What's a 401K? That's the second time today I've encountered that code. Must be an American thing. I guess I should google it, but I can't be arsed.

[Doug]

Charles sez:
"I am happy not to be a Zimbabwean female athlete with a penis."

Oh, c'mon! Once she admitted to having a penis, she got a 40% pay raise!

What's not to like about having a penis?

[Biff]

I think the book should come with a fake cover like "Advanced Calculus" or something so that when reading it other people will think it is not a funny book at all, and will try to increase your happiness as opposed to decreasing it (like stealing the book for instance).

[Chosti]

You are a fucking genius.

[Rudy Phelps]

Wow, the plugging has actually managed to get more shameless. "Please, buy my book for the poor underprivileged wretches I spend my money on.", or am I missing the point?

[Johan Hjelm]

No, no, no. You must tell us how buying your book makes you unhappy. We couldn't care less about your happiness (unless we could make it ours), as you note. Now we are just envious at your smug ass, and want to pull the chair out from under you without your hearing us coming up from behind.

Personally, I'd never buy the book. Reading whining blog comments IRL is quite enough. I did buy a couple of your previous books at a sale, though, and enjoyed them - even more since they were marked down to $2. And they made great presents once you got the sticker off. I'll do the same with the one you're plugging now, unless Harry Potter is cheaper.

Hope that helped.

//Johan

[Clair]

Your on the right track. How do I know ? I retired in 2000 at the age of 72 and I have been requested to return 3 times now to help out the crew at the office and every time it is more fun than the last. It is just plain easier and know this that the new guys could not handle the crisis.

[AusLisa]

'of'

Please insert it wherever it will cause you the least amount of additional happiness.

You're welcome.

Incidentally, leaving that little open invitation increased my own happiness disproportionately to the (non-existant) decrease in your own. I assume it was deliberate, therefore 'win-win'.

Thank you.

[Keith]

Wow, that WAS different.

[Mark]

What about the Schadenfreude effect? Not buying your book has a negligible impact on your happiness, since you are already so rich, but it increases my happiness by a much greater amount since I am not contributing to the great wealth of The Man. Thus net happiness in the world is increased. And what happened to your story about you having both a penis and a vagina? I would think that would take priority. Thank you.

[Kendra]

So let me get this straight, you have the Dilbert money and your cat has no golden slippers?? That is borderline cruelty right there LOL.

[Mrs. Micah]

Eh, you're allowed to be happy. Dilbert is your happiness-smoother, he's quite miserable enough for the two of you.

I just reread the Principle. Good stuff.

[D. Mented]

Right now, every single thing I think might make me happy, or even give me short-lived relief from difficulties, blows up in my face.
Go ahead, ruin my day; pay off my mortgage! It'll just make my roof fall in, or my house slip off its foundation.
I don't try to make people miserable - even people I don't like - makes me feel guily, so I just don't do it, and I don't like people who do.(Yes, it's true, I don't like a lot of people)
I don't really care if buying your book will change your state of mind - that's really up to you to deal with. Since you're still on the subject, I won't be buying this particular book because I've already read what's in it.I wasn't going to say, but everything else that could be said about your latest and the purchase thereof seems to have been said already.
D. Mented

[XX EE]

This was the funniest sales pitch I've read/seen/heard.

EVAH.

Unfortunately, Scott, it didn't work.

You see, I already committed to trying to increase your happiness by ordering your newest book when you first challenged us to help make it a best seller. I also obtained a list of all of your books that are in print and have begun ordering them all in budget-friendly increments.

I'm sorry I didn't realize that this wouldn't make you happier.

I hope you will be made happier through the knowledge that I was trying to make YOU happier because you have made ME happier through your blog. Humans are also wired to reciprocate good for good and bad for bad.

Have a nice day!
:)

[BTTFVGO]

Wow! That is too cool. On Monday, I finally was able to purchase "The Dilbert Principle". I acquired it from a local book store. I acquire two other Dilbert books there (Dogbert's Management Handbook and The Way of the Weasel). Because I bought those (over the summer - the bookstore was new, then) and the *almost* complete Time Life Old West series (the originals - I've always wanted those, as well as each and every Dilbert book), plus brought back her container, she let me get it. I had ran into her at Wal-Mart the week before, and she, remembering my love and interest in Scott Adams books, told me she had gotten it, just for me. When I went to get it, she had it hid on top of a bookshelf, behind a picture, completely out of view. It was, literally, almost brand new. A $20 book (at the time). She gave it to me for $1. I gave her $5 and so she gave me another book for free. She is one of the nicest ladies I've ever met.

Anyway, I'm on page 23, and just read the Happiness test, which corresponds to what you are talking about. I love the book, and will finish it over the next week.

[RealityCheck]

Let me share a story with you Scott.

About 10 years ago I was in Scotland on holiday, Glasgow to be specific, wonderful place. I was riding into the city centre by train, from an outlying airport, Ayr I think. Anyway the passenger next to me, a matronly older woman with a heroically thick Glaswegian accent, had decided to strike up a conversation with me. At this time everywhere I went in England and Scotland had been peppered with street beggars hawking The Big Issue or just plain hands out begging. I had mentioned how sad it was. How much it distressed me. Well my fellow passenger got quite agitated hearing this.

"You dinnae gi'em any money di' ya?", she asked, eyebrows raised.

"Well, umm, yeah I did, couple of pounds.", I replied cautiously.

"Tsk, tsk. You're a kinldy soul for sure y'are, but ye dinnae be wantin' to gi'em any money", she asserted, gently but firmly, like a mother talking to a wayward child, "Most of 'em don't even need it."

I was shocked.

"You should see these people. They don't dress fancy. They look sad and ragged.", I was confident of my case, surely nobody would sit begging on the street when they could just be doing something productive to earn their cash?

"There was this beggar in Glasgow. Looked woeful he did, all dirty and raggedy and sad. He was a great actor he was. He had people convinced, he'd make 500 pounds a day if he made a penny. Just from begging in central station. People didn't mind, it was such a small individual amount, and it made them feel better to take pity on this poor soul.", then she grinned at me wickedly and chuckled, "Then when he was done for the day, he'd walk outside to his Mercedes and drive home."

What kind of car do you drive Scott?

[Jason Allen]

I'm not even half way to my retirement age, so your tax dollars aren't funding /my/ social security. In fact, by the time I do reach retirement age, there'll be nothing left.

I don't mind paying for other people's social security, medicare, or public school education through taxes. It's all part of living in a civilized community. My only demand is that other people understand their responsibility to reciprocate. Either the retired people in my community stop bitching about their tax dollars "wasted" on people they don't know, or they can give me a refund on the tax dollars wasted on them.

[Jason]

And how many copies of your own book have you bought?

[fnc]

It's like "trickle down economics", but with happiness.

[Johnski]

You've actually convinced me to give all procedes of my amateur comic to you. But being that it runs in my junior college's paper for free, you will recieve nothing...sorry I have nothing to give, I am up to my ass in alligators.

http://www.awritersblock.com

[synapticmisfires]

Well that settles it. I'm going to drop out of college and become a ball-fuzzer. If you keep making money, that'll be a real growth industry. I will build my fortune in the tennis ball factory.

Somehow I always knew it would involve fuzzy balls, and in that case, this is really the best I could have hoped.

[Rich T.]

People bought "The Dilbert Principle" - which, by the way, is a great book, and I mean that sincerely - not because they thought one way or another about its author or his happiness, but because (1) they wanted a voice to speak for them, and (2) they wanted to feel better about their work lives by seeing someone take jabs at management.

I have always thought that "Dilbert" has moved over the years from fulfilling these functions to doing just the opposite: reminding corporate stiffs of their pitiful cubicle existence that never gets better with each passing year. Dilbert is by now pathetic.

But it's still funny, if you overlook the pathethic aspect.

As for your new book: since it doesn't fulfill the above-mentioned functions, it will sell mostly to the curious "look what the 'Dilbert' guy also wrote" type of reader, i.e. those who for some strange reason would rather buy the book than simply reading the posts on this website.

One other commment: you wrote "I have enough money for my own purposes, unless I start buying golden slippers for the cat." You're also feeding your family, right?

[Rob]

Finally! A blog entry that doesn't have reproductive or excretory connotations!

It's about time. Frankly, I'd like to hear more about the stupid things that happen to people involved in the restaurant business. That don't have any reproductive or excretory associations.

There are some, aren't there??

[Alice in Wonderland]

That's just the drugs talking.

[Drone74B]

It would work, if I didn't currently live outside the US and was able to use Amazon.

That reminds me of my work, somewhat. I work as a magazine designer. I'm paid to put together a fortnightly magazine (That's every two weeks for those who went to a public school in the US). It takes me about three days to do it, yet I'm paid a full time wage. Most days, I sit at my desk and surf the net and read news, Wikipedia or blogs from famous cartoonists. When people ask me what I'm working on, I say, "Oh, just acrhiving past issues, gathering files for the next one, working on advertising, etc".

In reality, I have zero stress. Seriously - ZERO. I get paid way above average to do less work than a union worker. I could work harder, get promoted and make more money, but all that would do is take away my free time for a minor increase in pay. Maybe when I'm older...

[Rickie]

Sure are alot of whingers reading your blog.

I personally don't give a damn where your money goes, basically 'cause you earned it. There's always gonna be less fortunate people in the world but that doesn't mean we should pick on those who are successful.

40% is more than enough. I say, keep up the good work. =) You keep churning out great things to read, but mostly you get people whinging...so bugger that, I say you rock.

[GeekyGirl]

I've got an IQ of about 150, but nobody loves a genius, I discovered (at the tender age of 8!) so I learned, early, to act much dumber than I am. The bullies leave you alone. When I'm around very bright people, I'm bright. Less bright people, less bright. Like a car shifting gears.

I also act dumb at work - keeps the workload down and fewer people dropping by for those easy answers. Who needs the stress? Not dumb enough to get FIRED, mind you, just....dumb...enough.

Which makes me...not so dumb.

8)

[Tuzo]

I like it: "Buy this book and save a life"!

A useful post with good practical advice. No more time to write though, I have twelve flaming lemurs to put out here at work.

[Eric Miller]

Your happy former coworker would be proud. That was the most eloquent, perfectly reasoned and logical load of bullshit I've ever read.

[ShirtBloke]

Sorry Scott, but you're wrong - it's actually all hormonal - and completely out of your control......

"The reason why some people are more generous than others is down to levels of a single hormone in the brain.

A new study suggests that those who give more to charity, open their wallets and act kindly to strangers have higher than normal levels of oxytocin hormone in the brain, while mean-spirited people have relatively lower levels.

The brain chemical could explain one of the most important traits of human, as opposed to animal society: we are altruistic towards people we do not know, are proud of being Good Samaritans, and are generous and charitable when we do not have to be."

Also a side benefit is that the hormone gives 20% men erections (thought that bit would get your attention).....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/earth/2007/11/07/scigen107.xml

[Bruce Harrison]

Book? What book?

[Roger]

"life was one long turd sandwich"

thats better than a penis joke!

lmao

[Marc]

There's a flaw in your reasoning. Well, maybe not a real flaw, since this is actually a marketing pitch and therefore not subject to reality or logic in any way.

Since you said you have enough money and tend not to dress better than the blind hobo, all that extra money I would send your way has no place to go. Will you actually play more tennis if I buy your book? No, you'll play twice a week, whether I buy it or not.

So basically, out of my cash for your book, 40% will go to the Federal Wealth Redistribution System, and the remaining 60% goes into the Scott Adams Real Early Retirement Fund.

The world might be better off if I just buy the tennis balls with the money saved from buying the book. Because I don't play tennis, those balls would not have been bought otherwise. That's more income for Tennis Ball Fuzzy Covering Applicators Union Local #238 members.

And I can always learn to juggle my fuzzy balls.

[bcammack]

[David Adams wrote: You could have also labeled it "Happiness according to Democrats".]

You don't actually know any Democrats, do you, David? You just get crap like that from Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly, and don't bother with dealing with normal people, right?

[Sing]

Nice angle. I think it might have helped.

[rewboss]

Let me see. If I buy one of your books, some of the money goes towards making a few people a bit happy and the rest goes towards not making you any happier than you already are.

So if I take the money I would have spent on your book and give it all to a starving family in Elbonia, I'd be making a few people quite a bit happier and you'd still be just as happy yourself.

Now, since making some people quite a bit happier would make me feel more righteous (and therefore smugly happy) than making a few people just a bit happier, I naturally choose to send my money to Elbonia.

How do you feel about that?

[Steven Levy]

Re: "no yacht"

A rich man tells his rabbi he has no need of wealthy trappings, that he has a simple home, that he doesn't eat steak but only bread. The rabbi says, "But you must use your wealth. Buy a big house, and absolutely make sure you're eating costly meats with every meal." He continues to insist over the man's protests. Finally, the rich man relents and agrees to eat wealthy-man's meals.

The rabbi's student is appalled. "Why," he asks, "did you insist on his acting like a rich man?"

"Because if he's eating meat, he'll understand that the poor need bread. If he lives on bread, he'll think the poor can live on stones."

So get a yacht, Scott! Or at least buy an expensive tennis racquet, perhaps strung with catgut from the cat you won't buy golden slippers for. And if you don't eat meat, go for the pricey tofu.

(I actually applaud your lifestyle choice, not that you care, but chances to use good stories like this come up too rarely to pass up.)

[Avi]

99.99% of the world would switch jobs with you if they had the chance?

The other .01 percent is other cartoonists like Stephan Pastis, presidents and CEOs.

[rockandroller]

If we all pretended we already bought the book, like your former co-worker pretended to be busier than he was, would you knock it off?

I really wasn't annoyed about this today until the repeated comment by you on other people's posts, "You don't buy gifts?" I think it's beyond arrogant to assume that just because we read your blog we want to buy up all your products and give them to everyone as gifts, as though there's nothing anyone else would like to receive more than a book about someone's blog. Come ON. I buy gifts, THOUGHTFUL gifts, not ones someone is pushing on me. If anything made me completely NOT want to buy the book, it was your comments today.

[Robert Hamilton]

Scott, I'm a big fan of yours (6-3" 245 lbs.) but there ain't no way on Earth that I'm gonna pay almost $20.00 to re-read your old blog posts, unless you added a whole lot of neked celebrity photos. I'm not a marketing guru, but you might want to re-consider your marketing strategy regarding convincing your blog fans to pay $20.00 for stuff they weren't reading when they were available for free! a better approach would be to sponsor some kind of a contest with the book somehow involved.

[Stomper]

[You don't buy gifts? -- Scott]

Umm, actually, my wife buys most of our gifts. And when I tried to interest her in your blog, she didn't bite (we do not have similar senses of humor). So I would not buy the book as a gift for her.

Nevertheless, that WAS a good response to my post.

--Stomper

[rita mae]

OMG! I just watched a 14 minute interview you had with Charlie Rose in 1999. (I'm at work but I can do that because I'm on my lunch hour -- yeah -- that's it -- )

You were just like I imagined. You are so normal and down-to-earth. How amazing. You are a phenomenon.

I am not worthy.

Rita Mae

PS You blink alot. Nervous tic? It only made me love you more.

[Mr. Wampus]

I feel a little bit like I did the time I was invited to a party at a friend's house. Everyone showed up at the house, people were enjoying hors d'ouvres and a nice glass of wine, and generally enjoying good conversation. After about an hour, the host tapped on his wine glass to get everyone's attention. He said that while he had everyone gathered, he wanted to tell us about a great new business opportunity. WHAT?!? This is a COMMERCIAL???!!!

I felt betrayed. There I was enjoying a nice merlot and some salmon dip, and suddenly my host wants to sell me something! Worse yet, he wants ME to sell something on his behalf!

Now here I am all these years later, older and wiser, (or so I thought) reading a nice blog entry about happiness and WHAM!!! I'm right back in the middle of a commercial!! Dammit, why didn't I see that coming? I must not be getting enough sleep.

[~C4Chaos]

LOL. this is so evil. you don't even need to hire a copywriter. i agree with this guy:

"I think your next book should just be a compilation of promotions you've done for this book. And then to make it more annoying, include some promotional postings for the book itself."

seriously, good luck with the book.

~C

[Lulu]

You are so right. People want to knock you out of your clouds. I have VERY successful children and have learned that not everyone wants to hear about them. So, as a consequence, I do not talk about my children as much as I would like AND I have learned that listening and praising other people's children helps keep me humble.

[Drew]

No, didn't work. I'm one of the poor, unhappy souls. However, it would make me happy if you just gave me a free copy of the book. Isn't there some middle man that gets cut out if you just give me the happiness directly?

Wait a second, I think I just asked another dude to give me hapiness....directly. I need to get back to work.

[Hovie]

"...no second homes..."

Hmm. How many "second homes" can a person have? I thought it was one. Enlighten me.

[disembodied consciousness]

The Happiness Stealers

Those other people are stealing my happiness! They're taking money as taxes that belongs to ME and using it for stupid things like protecting me from terrorists! They're not doing their work so I feel bad, both about doing my work and about not doing my work! They vote for the wrong political party which definitely makes me unhappy! The rich won't give me their money. The poor want me to give them my money. It's just so unfair!

Great job Scott. The monkeys are definitely dancing today.

[Yuriy]

Personally, I'll wait for the book to turn up at my local library sale for $1.50, and then support said library.

[Chad Turner]

You have to talk about the new earth-planet!!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=450467&in_page_id=1965

now GO

[KnightRider]

Yes, it worked. I bought your book and I totally agree with you. Once my band's album kicked my income beyond a certain tax bracket, I enjoyed my work completely. You probably never heard of us, and I'm not plugging us here. But we're comfortable, doing what we love. Now I spend most of my time worrying about whether it was a good idea to let my wife leave the house with the credit card.

[Kevin Kunreuther]

Almost want to throw caution to the wind and buy your book, trouble is I'm a little strapped for cash lately. I miss the days when I was able to buy any book, compact disc, a nice dinner at a restaurant, go to a movie or play, etcetera, on a whim. Almost every purchase has to be reasoned and thought out and discussed. Lottery tickets are not even on the table. To top that off, my pilot I was co-creating with that writer from Slate is dead in the water, though neither of us are members of SAG and it's a "reality" show, which would have been perfect for the strike. Maybe I'll wait for your book to be available at my library. NO, wait, can't afford to spare the gas expense.

[Adam]

Did you just say, "Buy my book, or you hate America?"

[HALiverpool]

Why do you persist in equating income with happiness? It's that kind of thinking that makes rich people miserable.

-HAL

[Kent]

I'm sill not buying your book. Nice try, though! Could I get you to promote my PayPal account so your readers could just send me money to see if I would become happier? It would be a grest experiment.

[Sherman Uitzetter]

Ha ha. No, won't work on me. I don't need your help (or anybody else's) to redistribute my wealth.

[Arby]

You are a good person for not living a conspicuous consumption lifestyle. Your happiness is more of an inner-self experience. Your contribution to protecting the environment is your modest lifestyle.

What bugs me are well to do hypocritical people that preach global warming from on high yet still live in very large homes, drive inefficient cars, fly anywhere at the drop of a hat and spend like crazy on self-indulgent fleeting pleasures. How a person spends their money is more an indication of character than how they earned it.

[John]

No, it didn't work.

I already bought your book last week.

[Jesse A. Dubuque]

I'm needy, can you plug my website and/or my business?

Then maybe I'll buy your book!

www.TheRealEstateDude.net

[Fuzznsmoo]

Not if you're going to use the money to buy Dunlop balls. I never liked the way they felt - heavy, and they didn't seem to take the topspin as well as the Wilson. We also seemed to get a lot more defective Dunlops - flat out of the can. But they seemed well suited for someone with a bigger serve and flatter strokes.

[draagonfly]

I think it's great that you wrote another book, that you're promoting it on your own blog (I mean seriously, whose blog is it anyway?), and if you make another cool million I say more power to you! You've obviously figured out the "like attracts like" thing and are working the angles. I love reading all the creative ways you've found to relate your book to the subject of the day. I'm interested to see how long you can maintain the pace.

I work a regular office job and I guess I'm guilty of being one of those that can get their work done faster (especially given I have time to read your blog!). I don't make a ton of money, but I don't expect to be in this position forever either. Reality is malleable. We're just here to have fun. I'm glad to see you're having fun. :)

I hope you sell a ton of books so you still find it entertaining to pose questions to us about physics and economics and humor. You give me new perspectives and I appreciate that. :) Thank you!

[Mark Thorson]

It's not DNA. The key to
understanding happiness is
that there is only a finite
amount of happiness to go
around. To become happy,
all I have to do is visualize
it flowing from you to me.

Ahhh! I feel happier already.
I don't even have to ask how
you feel. Sorry about that.
Not.

[QwkDrw]

Interesting "Goresque"* (* copyright notice) strategy for selling your book -- you'll feel good about yourself if you buy it. Optionally, you might consider speaking with a CPA in an accounting firm about tax planning alternatives that don't result in just writing huge checks to the government.

By the way, Dunlop tennis balls ROCK! We have even bought them by the case

!!
www.givemeamomentblog.blogspot.com

[niCk(MemBeth)]

That post depressed me so bad, I'll think I'll never come here again.

Will that make you happy? That's what I live for, is your happiness! If other people are trying to pull back down to average, I will offer you curses.

That should bring your happiness make to it's fully erect state.

[Jay Bee]

You are incorrigible, you'll do or say anything to sell that damn book!

[mason]

If I hadn't already read your book back when it was just blog postings, I would probably want it. Except that if I didn't know how much I liked your blog postings (from reading them) I probably wouldn't know I wanted it and so I wouldn't buy it. I think your biggest target market are recent devoted readers who aren't technologically savvy enough to look at your old posts through Google caching, but are still smart enough to appreciate your humor. That, and people who like to give weird books as Christmas gifts.

But then again, what do I know? I hope it sells well, I'm just not going to buy a copy myself.

[DML]

I would have bought your book if you said it funded the murder of old monks in Myanmar. Would you classify that as trying decrease or increase your happiness?

[Steve]

Today's post started out interesting, but turned into about as shameless as it gets. Why didn't you just post a picture of some starving kid in Africa?

If you're willing to suggest you don't intend on spending the money you make on the book and are only planning to support those who are in need, why don't you announce 100% of the profits will go to a specific charity?

[100 M.ILIO.NI DI T.ONN.EL.LATE]

----- Original Message -----
From: Domenico Schietti
To: carabinieri@carabinieri.it ; urp.mi@poliziadistato.it
Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2007 7:46 PM
Subject: Re: OGGETTO: DENUNCIA SETTA DEGLI INGEGNERI SCIENTISTI

Carissimi, vi ricordo per l'ennesima volta che con una leva si può alzare il mondo, e quindi con pochissimo sforzo ed una leva, anche un bambino può ricaricare un bacino idroelettrico

Non esiste nessun problema di energia, si tratta di una colossale truffa ai danni del popolo italiano e di tutti i popoli del mondo

Con una leva vi posso riempire il bacino di una diga valtellinese almeno 3 volte al giorno

Con il ponte di un meccanico si possono fare 50 mila euro di corrente al giorno

- Andate dal vostro meccanico e appoggiate sul ponte una piattaforma e vi mettete sopra 10-15 tonnellate.
- Sotto al ponte mettete un serbatoio di aria da comprimere modificato appositamente.
- Abbassando il ponte ad un certo punto la piattaforma rimarrà appoggiata sul serbatoio di aria da comprimere.
- Al costo di pochi cent di corrente per alzare i ponte, è possibile ricaricare un serbatoio di aria compressa in grado di far andare per decine di km un autovericolo ad aria compressa.
- Se preferite potete azionare anche una turbinetta ad aria compressa.
- Se nel serbatoio ci mettete acqua invece che aria e vivete in montagna, potete rispedirla in quota anche duecento metri più su e poi sfruttare la caduta.

E' un complotto globale, dovete dare l'annuncio che non esiste nessun problema energetico, si tratta di una truffa

100-milioni-di-tonnellate.blogspot.com/

[Dan]

[I live an embarrassingly modest lifestyle.]

That refutes the whole theory right there.

New tennis fuzz twice a week does not an economy daddy make you. You'd have to do all those things you said you don't. Buy that second home (on the French Riviera), get one Bentley for each day of the week, host an episode of MTV Cribs, etc.

Then I might actually buy the book. :)

[bh]

Okay fine. I just opened another browser window and reserved a copy at my public library. You are welcome to the income. But what I would really like to know is which thought makes you happier? The thought of all your money, or the thought of the bazillion people you've made laugh their a%% off? I don't care how you would answer, I'm just curious.

[Mark Harrison]

> Over 40% of my earnings go to fund YOUR Social Security,
> provide valuable services for children and the elderly,
> and make our men and women in uniform safer.

[Emphasis mine]

Here's the deal - I'll buy your book, if you give me a promise that you'll refund the price if it turns out the above statement is true.

By the way, I don't actually live in the US, because I'm English... So if it DOES turn out you're contributing to MY social security, I'll be wildly impressed, and happy to pay :-)

Mark in England, not in the USA

[nobody]

How much longer are you going to plug your book in every blog? Or make the book the actual topic of the blog? Is there an actual number of books that must be sold before you will give it a rest? I really like this blog, but I'm getting annoyed. I might give take a break for a month, maybe when I come back the sales pitch will have died down.

Since you love these types of things so much ... don't you think that most of the people who read your blog are fans ... and they will either buy your book (if they buy books) or not? Have you learned through your research that "marketing" to an established fan base actually increases sales?

[Brian]

My guess is that if I buy the book, you only personally "earn" about $2. And you probably got some big advance from your publisher, which means each individual sale doesn't bring you any more money. But let's say you get $2, and 80 cents goes to taxes. I'm better off giving $1 to the bum on the corner then spending $16 for a book of stuff I've already read.
Nice try though.

[water_moon]

You might do better to pull a Bill Gates and dodge the taxes with a charitable foundation.

Because see you're missing your own point, taxes and income drains are ment to be complained about, not pointed out as good in any way shape or form.

[JP]

"instead of motivating people to find happiness for themselves, the self-appointed Happiness Evaluators identify those with 'too much' happiness, take theirs, and try to gain power"

You are deluded. The irony is that the only way there would not be an inherent baseline differential in levels of 'happiness', which it is pretty clear you associate directly with wealth, is if we lived in a true Marxist state.

But hey I am sure it is just a co-incidence that kids from a white, middle class, two parent family background are more 'motivated' to succeed than everyone else.

[LA Clay]

Now this is cool,

I just checked with an international copyright attorney, since you have posted this blog on the web, basically it's now public domain. I think I'll copy all of the blog posts and publish my own book (in China just to be safe) and title it "Stuck on stealing blog posts, Monkey Brain!"

In the end you will thank me for a long drawn out legal battle. Think of all of the law clerks, copy people, couriers and chinese take-out's you will be supporting! Remember any publicity is good publicity.

[Larry]

There you go again, being gratuitously provocative. The guy who puts fuzz on Dunlop tennis balls has a 401K. Uh huh. Pretending to be ignorant of the fuzz industry's ruthlessness in general and Dunlop's particular association with the notorious Fuzz Facility 23.

Great Post! Keep up the excellent word.
Love & Gratitude,
Tina
Think Simple. Be Decisive.
~ Productivity, Motivation & Happiness