Coaching practices for Anticipation and Happiness

Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For Anticipation and Happiness, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.

Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?

• I won’t let myself look forward to good things in case they don’t pan out
• There’s something good on the calendar but I ignore it completely until the day arrives, so the whole stretch of looking forward to it
• I never have anything on the horizon to look forward to, and even when something nice does happen I’m already onto the next thing
• I keep telling myself that once I hit this milestone I’ll finally feel happy
• I’m about to make a big decision absolutely certain it’ll make me happier

Practices that may help

1. Anticipatory savoring
   Deliberately look forward to a future good event to extract joy before it arrives.
   Savoring: Getting More From the Good
2. Savor experiences before they happen through anticipation
   Spend time looking forward to a positive event in vivid detail — the anticipation itself is a source of well-being.
   Savoring the Moment, Made Practical
3. Anticipate good experiences in advance — and savor them afterward
   A good experience provides happiness three times: in anticipation, during, and in memory.
   Time Affluence Practices (Cassie Holmes)
4. Plan for hedonic adaptation in your goals
   The happiness boost from achieving a goal fades faster than you expect — design goals with this in mind.
   Affect Forecasting: Why You Mispredicted How You’d Feel
5. Correcting hedonic forecasting errors
   Before making a significant decision in pursuit of pleasure, check whether similar things have historically produced the wellbeing you predicted.
   Epicurean Philosophy: Practical Happiness
6. Build an anticipation window before the reward
   Planning and looking forward to a reward recruits dopamine drive before the reward arrives.
   Reward Prediction Error: Using Dopamine Science to Stay Motivated
7. Anticipate obstacles before they arise
   Hopeful thinking includes expecting barriers and planning responses — it is not uncritical optimism.
   Hope Theory: Agency, Pathways, and Getting Unstuck
8. Describe the difficult situation specifically and realistically
   Spell out the scenario you are anticipating — who, what, when — without minimizing or catastrophizing.
   Cope Ahead: DBT’s Method for Preparing for Difficult Situations
9. Slow down adaptation with deliberate savoring
   Actively attend to positive experiences in the moment to extract more happiness from what you already have.
   The Hedonic Treadmill, Made Practical
10. Use the anticipation of interaction to create liking before meeting
    Knowing you will interact with someone in the future makes you evaluate them more positively before it happens.
    The Propinquity Effect (Leon Festinger)

Describe your situation in your own words to search the complete practice library.