Speaker brings pupils happiness

Guest speaker Sir Anthony Seldon was welcomed to Christ's Hospital for valuable talk on happiness SUS-180130-111948001

Christ's Hospital gave a warm welcome to Sir Anthony Seldon who gave a talk in the theatre on Tuesday January 23 as part of the school's visiting speakers' programme for senior pupils.

Sir Anthony became a household name in recent years as a political author, known for his biographies of Labour and Conservative party prime ministers dating back to Margaret Thatcher.

His topic was ‘Beyond Happiness’, the title of his book which explores ‘the trap of happiness and how to find deeper meaning and joy’.

As former headmaster of Wellington College, he introduced lessons on happiness and founded the charity ‘Action for Happiness’.

Rebecca Stamp, Second Monitor (senior Grecian) at CH, said: “Sir Anthony Seldon’s passion for the subject ‘Beyond Happiness’ was clear throughout his lecture.

“He taught us what he believes are the key aspects of happiness, cleverly sectioned into two acronyms, ‘GREAT’ and ‘DREAM’, each letter describing an action that will contribute to our happiness.

“For example, my personal favourite was ‘Giving’. He taught us that giving time, for example, to others, no matter who they are, will create a sense of self-worth within ourselves, ultimately leading to happiness.

“His speech was extremely valuable, especially as it is an important topic in today’s society. We’d like to thank Sir Anthony for taking the time out of his busy life to speak to us.”