August 2025 – Small pleasures

This is what Soňa Klepek Jonášová, a member of the Red Button network, says about the book. 

At a time when we often exhaust ourselves and the planet in pursuit of grand pleasures, the collective The School of Life offers the book "Small Pleasures," which teaches us to find joy in the small, seemingly ordinary things around us. Instead of chasing grand experiences, the authors guide us to discover the richness of small delights that—if we pay attention—can bring us comfort and joy daily with almost no effort or cost.

The book contains 52 short meditations on life’s small joys—from the intense pleasure of holding a child’s hand, through the paradoxical joy of a friendly argument, to the peaceful happiness of watching a sunset. Each chapter zooms in on one such moment of pleasure to explore what’s really happening and why it moves us, touches us, and makes us smile.

The School of Life, founded in part by Alain de Botton, focuses on developing emotional intelligence and believes that our most enduring problems stem from a lack of self-awareness, compassion, and communication. The organization operates from ten physical campuses worldwide and has over 7 million subscribers on YouTube.

"Small Pleasures" shows that small joys are entry points to the big themes of our lives. It explains that in a culture encouraging us to chase grand, self-promoting pleasures, small joys are actually gateways to the essence of our being. By focusing attention on the small moments that move us, we sharpen our senses and return to the world with newly found excitement and enthusiasm.

The book highlights the power of mindfulness as one of the most important competencies—not only for personal life but also for quality decision-making in business. It demonstrates how the concept of small pleasures helps on tough days and why it’s important not to wait until evening but to pepper your day with little moments of happiness. The subsequent connection to gratitude helps us realize that even when not everything goes well, we always have things in life to be thankful for.

Who is Soňa Klepek Jonášová?

Soňa Klepek Jonášová is the founder of INCIEN and an expert for the sustainability community in Red Button EDU.