Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder

Huffington notes that wonder does not come from what we see in the world around us; instead, wonder is a “product of our state of mind, our being, the perspective from which we are looking at the world” (174). She quotes the astronaut Edgar Mitchell, who describes wonder as a “sensation of physically and mentally extending out into the cosmos” (177) and the Tesla founder Elon Musk, who frames wonder as a sense of yearning for increasing the “scope and scale of human consciousness” (178). To access this personal enlightenment, Huffington points to nature, art, music, and literature as “oases” that can promote wonder by disconnecting from the hyperconnected world. Huffington cautions again against technology, calling it a disruption to living in the moment: “by so-obsessively documenting our experiences, we never truly have them” (180). For Huffington, freeing oneself from the myriad stimuli in the world unlocks wonder.

Huffington addresses the hyperconnectivity of the modern world and emphasizes the need to disconnect from distractions, leaning instead into caring for others, loving, and slowing down. She laments that holidays are no longer times of rest and reflection, and explores her own memories of childhood in Greece, where she observed religious holidays with reverence and learned about living in the moment and appreciating one’s surroundings—that is, cultivating wonder—from visiting the Tharri Monastery.