The Joy Plan: How I Took 30 Days to Stop Worrying, Quit Complaining, and Find Ridiculous Happiness

by Kaia Roman

Overview

As a mother, a wife, and a businesswoman, Kaia Roman always had a plan. But when her biggest plan, the business she cofounded, collapsed, Kaia found herself crushed by depression. And what felt even worse was that, with a husband and two kids relying on her to get out of bed, she didn't have a plan to move forward.

Determined to turn her life around and put her ingrained habits of stress and anxiety behind her, Kaia decided to put everything else on hold and dedicate thirty days to the singular pursuit of joy. The results were astonishing—and lasted much longer than the initial monthlong project.

In this uplifting and eye-opening memoir, Kaia uses her business savvy to create a concrete Joy Plan to get back on her feet fast. Using scientific research on hormones, neurotransmitters, and mindfulness, along with the daily dedication to creating a more joyful existence, Kaia teaches readers how to move past temporary happiness and succeed in creating joy that lasts.

Complete with advice, exercises, and key takeaways, The Joy Plan is Kaia's step-by-step guide to how she, and everyone else, can ditch the negative and plan for the joy in their lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781492648765
Publisher:	Sourcebooks
Publication date:	07/11/2017
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	1,082,070
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Kaia Roman has a twenty-year background in public relations and marketing. She is currently a Mindfulness Teacher for elementary school students and a regular contributor to numerous mindfulness, happiness, and wellbeing blogs. She lives in Santa Cruz, CA.

Table of Contents

Introduction xi

Part 1 Background (How did I end up here?) 1

Chapter 1 Now What? 3

Chapter 2 The Bitch in My Head 17

Chapter 3 Know Thyself 29

Part 2 Strategy (The PLAN!) 39

Chapter 4 Does This Feel Good? 41

Chapter 5 Reboot: From Stressed to Blessed 55

Chapter 6 Mindfulness Over Matter 65

Chapter 7 Eat, Play, Love 77

Part 3 Challenges (I thought this would be easier.) 93

Chapter 8 The Quest for Happy Hormones 95

Chapter 9 Let It Go, Let It Go 105

Chapter 10 Complaining Versus Creating 121

Part 4 Team (These are my people.) 133

Chapter 11 That's True Love 135

Chapter 12 Personal Board of Directors 147

Chapter 13 Kids and Other Spiritual Teachers 157

Part 5 Projections (Light up the future!) 169

Chapter 14 Writing a New Story 171

Chapter 15 Exercising the Joy Muscle 183

Chapter 16 Joy Is Contagious 195

Chapter 17 The Journey That Counts 205

Afterword 217

Appendix: Create Your Own Joy Plan 233

The Joy Plan Discussion Guide 248

Endnotes 255

References and Resources 272

Index 289

Acknowledgments 300

About the Author 303

Editorial Reviews

05/08/2017
Businesswoman Roman presents an energized and informative plan for transforming your life, just as she transformed hers. When Roman’s startup unexpectedly closed shop, she was distraught until she heard about a new life practice based on the “law of attraction”: the idea that positive attracts positive. Roman decided to try it. This book charts the results of her successful first 30 days (and beyond) and includes Roman’s tips for creating a “joy plan,” inspirational exhortations such as “the optimist creed,” and the alphabet of gratitude. Roman makes transforming your life sound possible. All that’s required is that you shift your thoughts toward positive stories instead of the negative ones so many of us tell ourselves. Roman also identifies simple steps that readers can adopt, such as creating a vision board or writing a letter to a long-term partner. To skeptics of her approach, she cheerfully admits that “many people... wanted to vomit” in response to her “overabundance of happiness.” Just as many people, however, caught “the buzz from joy.” Readers who keep an open mind throughout may become believers. Agent: Andrea Somberg, Harvey Klinger Literary Agency. (July)

Publishers Weekly

"Life-saving. That is the most accurate description of The Joy Plan. As I devoured the transformative words of this book, I wished I’d had it during a desolate time in my life … but it is not too late. Whenever fear, worry, anxiety, or negativity grip me, I simply openThe Joy Plan. Waiting to shed light into my darkness is a strategy, an inspiring anecdote, or well-researched fact with the power to bring me back to hope, peace, and positivity. The Joy Plan is much more than one woman’s journey from rock bottom; it is a universal lifeline for reviving the world’s long-lost joy." — Rachel Macy Stafford, New York Times best selling author and founder of Hands Free Mama

"The Joy Plan was birthed through direct experimentation in the laboratory of Kaia Roman's own life, qualifying her to wisely and tenderly guide readers to discover and cultivate the seed of joy that has been implanted within us all. Follow the steps in this book and watch how joy—the spiritual dimension of happiness—blossoms in your life. " — Michael Bernard Beckwith, author of Life Visioning

"If you are in the midst of a joy drought, so to speak, this could be the book for you. Part memoir, part universally applicable joy-strategy, The Joy Plan tells the author's story of suffering and lays out, step-by-step, the process that helped her experience much more happiness. Kaia Roman writes in an engaging way, so reading this book can feel like listening to a friend." — Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness and Real Happiness

"All of us need to learn how to shift from stress to joy. The Joy Plan is a positive, practical guide to help you experience more of the happiness you deserve." — Dr. Barbara De Angelis, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Soul Shifts

"The Joy Plan is easy to read, engaging, full of great scientific advice as well as fun and enlivening stories to get you motivated to find your joy on a daily basis. Don’t let the stress of modern life weigh you down! Take responsibility for steering your course towards happiness with this well-written and researched book." — MeiMei Fox, New York Times bestselling co-author of Bend, Not Break

"I love The Joy Plan! We create plans for our work, our finances, our life – but hardly ever for the most important things in our life: gratitude, optimism, and joy. This book will help you achieve exactly that – more joy! And who doesn’t need that?" — Michaela Haas, PhD, author of Bouncing Forward: The Art and Science of Cultivating Resilience

"If you're looking for more meaning, purpose, and joy in your life then The Joy Plan is for you!" — Jason Wachob, founder and CEO of mindbodygreen

"An energized and informative plan for transforming your life..." — Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher