We want to provide great resources that are accessible and affordable to anyone with an internet connection, and do what we can to help the world become a better place.

We want to provide great resources that are accessible and affordable to anyone with an internet connection, and do what we can to help the world become a better place.

We encourage you to take this program at your own pace, and to the depth that works best for you and your life. That being said, about an hour or two a week is plenty of time to get the primary benefits of the program. And you can always dive in more deeply if you like. Plus you can go back and explore the Foundations offerings any time you want. This program is designed to be flexible, so that different people can easily adapt it to their needs.

• I am 18 or older, or a teenager whose parent or guardian has registered for me and communicated his or her permission to foundations@rickhanson.net for me to take this program.
• I understand that this is an educational program, not treatment for any physical or mental health condition. I take responsibility for my own experience in the program, and I am able to manage my reactions to program material on my own. I understand that Rick Hanson, his staff, and the guest experts do not have a professional relationship with me.
• I understand that any information conveyed to Rick Hanson in the context of the program may be read by members of his staff. Dr. Hanson may refer to comments or questions we receive in his presentations or other public communications; if he does this, he will do his best to leave out any identifying information, but please understand that any information you send to us is not confidential.
• I will not share my username and password with others, and I recognize that my account may be suspended if more than one person uses my username to log in to the Foundations program.
• I recognize that all editorial content and graphics in the Foundations of Well-Being program are copyrighted by Rick Hanson, who reserves all rights.
• I understand that I may be de-registered from the Foundations program if I violate these General Terms of Use.
• I understand that by posting in the FWB Forum or participating in the Chat feature on the FWB website, I am agreeing to the forum and chat Terms of Use, which establish common sense guidelines to appropriate behavior on the forum.

If you are an individual or organization with a substantial list and you would like to tell others about FWB – and are interested in receiving benefits for those who enroll through you – please go here for more information.

Like almost all other self-help books or programs, the Foundations program is very much a "do-it-yourself" process, and is not set up to offer individualized support or counsel for participants - especially not in live conversation with Dr. Hanson or our staff.

We do realize that this could be disappointing, but with nearly 10,000 participants and growing, we trust that you can understand our stance here.

In lieu of live phone-support, the program does contain extensive guidance for how to engage with it, member forums to seek out support from others.

• Four inspiring video presentations by Rick Hanson, Ph.D. offering interesting information and useful tools and methods
• Four guided experiential meditations to hardwire the good stuff into your brain
• Four revealing personality quizzes to understand yourself better
• Two guided creative activities that deepen the impact of the program
• A video interview with a distinguished guest expert
• Audio-only formats of these videos for easy listening on the go
• The slidesets used for Dr. Hanson's presentations, plus related slidesets
• Articles and handouts
• Related talks, videos, and other resources
• Access to participant-only forums, with sections applying the program to particular interests, such as mindfulness, children, stress management, depression, anxiety, trauma, addiction recovery, or spiritual practice.
• Weekly updates with inspiring quotations, suggested reflections, and bonus materials

Definitely. You can also stream Dr. Hanson’s presentations, practices, the experiential activities, and the guest expert interviews, in either a video or audio-only format.

Once you have paid for the program in full, it is yours to keep and turn to whenever you need it. You have lifetime access to all of the materials on the website, and they are all available for you to download. 

Rick Hanson’s New York Times bestselling book – Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence – is highly recommended, since it shows you how to turn your passing experiences – including in the Foundations program – into lasting inner resources woven into the fabric of your brain and your life.

You might like Dr. Hanson’s other books as well:
• Buddha’s Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom
• Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time
• Mother Nurture: A Mother’s Guide to Health in Body, Mind, and Intimate Relationships

And if you want to go even deeper, we’ll suggest a book for each Pillar of Well-Being:
Self-Caring Self-Compassion: Stop Beating Yourself up and Leave Insecurity Behind, by Kristin Neff, Ph.D.
Mindfulness Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life, by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D.
Learning Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence, by Rick Hanson, Ph.D.
Vitality Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain, by John Ratey, M.D.
Gratitude The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun, by Gretchen Rubin
Confidence The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are, by Brene Brown, Ph.D.
Calm The Relaxation Response, by Herbert Benson M.D.
Motivation The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, by Charles Duhigg
Intimacy You Just Don’t Understand, by Deborah Tannen, Ph.D.
Courage Non-Violent Communication: A Language of Life, by Marshall Rosenberg, Ph.D.

The Foundations of Well-Being uses the Hardwiring Happiness book as its basic text. But there is not a direct relationship between the chapters of Hardwiring Happiness and the pillars of the Foundations of Well-Being. 

The Learning pillar focuses on the methods of positive neuroplasticity in the Hardwiring Happiness book, and the frame of evolutionary neuropsychology (e.g., lizard, mouse, and monkey; green zone, red zone). 

The Safety (Self-Caring, Vitality, Calm, Courage), Satisfaction (Mindfulness, Gratitude, Motivation, Aspiration), and Connection (Learning, Confidence, Intimacy, Service) pillars draw on the practices in the 21 Jewels chapter in the Hardwiring Happiness book related to each one of these core needs.

I would also suggest checking out the reading guide for Hardwiring Happiness here: http://www.rickhanson.net/writings/books/reading-guides/

You bet. If you decide that this program is not for you, just tell us at foundations@rickhanson.net within 30 days of purchasing the program, and we'll give you a full refund.

The Foundations of Well-Being costs less than $2 a day - which you can pay for with 10 payments of $57, or with a single payment of $420. We operate on the honor system. If someone can afford this, then we hope they will pay it. On the other hand, if this fee is a hardship (as it could be for students, the disabled, elderly people on a small fixed income, folks who are unemployed or on public assistance, or many people in third world countries), then most definitely we want the person to apply for a partial or full scholarship.