I’m Anne Lafleur, founder of The Gift of Happiness.
My mission is not just to get these printed words out into the world, but to help people truly live them, finding ways to authentically integrate qualities of joy and generosity into how we live, work, and lead.
It is clear to me that all of us human beings need extra love and encouragement from time to time. We can also be the source of that love. When we remember that, and live accordingly, transformation happens.
How this began
At the end of 2012, I attended a seminar where I was asked to practice offering the tiniest gestures of care to a group of strangers: things like eye contact, listening, observations, encouragement, and smiles.
The experience changed my life.
As someone who had spent much of life feeling socially anxious, it was profound for me to realize not only how meaningful these things were to other people, but how deeply fulfilling they were for me to give.
The Gift of Happiness was born because I wanted to find simple, inexpensive ways to help people — including me! — remember to offer these small acts of generosity to others more often. Not only because it makes us happier as individuals, but also because I’m convinced that it is essential for the well-being of our families, communities and society as a whole.
My first product was a “Giving Kit”: a collection of greeting cards, stamps, candy, money, and posters that I gave to family members for Christmas. My hope was that that they would use the contents to make people smile, and experience the joy that comes from those small, unnecessary acts of generosity. Some of them actually did!
Connection Cards came soon after, the result of a brainstorming session with a friend about what else could go in a Giving Kit that wouldn’t cost much but could still have a big impact. My friend suggested a little card that simply said Reminder: You are Awesome. I printed some out and started giving them away that very day. People loved getting them! A few years later I had a collection of more than 150 different messages, and instruction guides for how to use them in all sorts of settings, from classrooms to workplaces to families.
Signs of Kindness are a natural extension of the more personal connection cards. They include many of the same messages, but instead of going to one person at a time, they can be seen by thousands of people a day, and impact not just individuals but entire communities. I’d daydreamed of signs like these years before, but only in late summer 2019 did I find a way to easily print and ship them. With the help of the internet and social media to make connections, and dozens of people willing to donate funds, by the end of 2020 there were signs in all 50 U.S. states.
In 2023, I left my job in corporate America to develop a set of programs to introduce people to the deeper principles behind the Gift of Happiness, and to help them get hands-on experience applying them in their own lives and relationships.
The work continues to evolve, but what keeps getting reinforced for me is that being good to each other isn’t as risky or difficult as we sometimes imagine — and the payoff is much bigger than we might think.