Here is an excerpt from an article written by Shawn Achor for and Michelle Gielan for Harvard Business Review and the HBR Blog Network. To read the complete article, check out the wealth of free resources, obtain subscription information, and receive HBR email alerts, please click here.

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Anyone who hopes to one day experience and fully benefit from living a life of abundant well-being, maintaining regular moderate physical activity is a non-negotiable resilience building factor. Moderate physical activity generates the willpower to force the body’s needs ahead of the brain’s autogenic response to disengage. Any and all physical activity that encourages cardiorespiratory function in order to help maintain itself is a compulsory life-long responsibility.

It is unquestionably the first barrier to overcome and literally the shortest path to recharge and reinvigorate the “self in order to confront and defeat difficult challenges. There is simply no better example of how a “less is more,” organic or holistic approach towards securing optimum well-being; not to mention the panoply of additional life-extending benefits.

Most people probably have a good idea of just how pig-headed and stubborn they really are. But knowing and actually helping themselves set realistic resilience building objectives and then achieve them, establishes a foothold towards long-term goal achievement.

Awareness of the actual individual “Physique Intelligence” starting point helps map out and set course to wanted destinations, taking into consideration the level of time and effort exerted finally determine the intensity of well feeling!

You have two choices. Stay the way you are, status quo. Or, stop wasting precious time trying to look good for others or pursuing personal pre-occupations toward materialistic wealth with gain. Instead, use that time and resources to start feeling good. Remember: body-well, brain-well, mind-well.

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Here is a direct link to the complete article.

Shawn Achor is an American happiness researcher, author, and speaker known for his advocacy of positive psychology. He authored The Happiness Advantage and founded GoodThink, Inc. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard University and a Master of Arts degree from Harvard Divinity School.

Michelle Gielan joined CBS News in July 2008. In 2009, she anchored and co-produced “Happy Week” at CBS, a week-long series of interviews focusing on fostering happiness in life, relationships, the workplace and at home.