She’s been on a faith-inspiring journey to understand what it is to pursue happiness. For the past year, Cooley has plunged headlong into a new hobby every two weeks. This transformative journey has expanded her world view and life experiences as well as deeply impacted her teaching. She is the recipient of a P&W 40 under 40 Best MBA Professor. Today, with a great deal of passion, she shares those insights through her popular course, “Happiness Blueprint.”
For over four years, Cooley has been inspiring the future business leaders at Emory. Her uncommon perspectives on happiness come from her lifelong pursuit of fun, creative, and fulfilling ways of living. With two young children and a vast social circle of 22 children under the age of 13, Cooley understands the importance of balancing family life with personal fulfillment.
She just completed a year-long Artist Residency Exploration, which included a wide array of activities. Her explorations ranged from baking to cold plunging, woodworking, collage making, embroidery, golf, home improvement, horseback riding, jewelry making, mahjong, ornament making, painting, pickleball, pottery, rock climbing, sewing and tennis. Each hobby served a specific purpose in her life: one for mental stimulation, one for creative expression, and one for physical fitness.
Cooley’s year in Denmark had a deep impact on her understanding of leisure and joy. As you might expect, Denmark is frequently lauded as among the happiest places on earth. Cooley thinks that reputation comes, in part, from the special connection Anderson’s citizens have with recreation. She found that hobbies are a big part of Danish culture and play a huge role in well-being.
Cooley discovered through her experiences that making time for hobbies is an important way to fight today’s modern distractions. She chose to replace evening TV and doomscrolling with reading instead. She decided to spend her time doing things that made her happy and feel accomplished.
Outside of her own story, Cooley is deeply committed to her community, using her creative and activist hobbies to connect with others. She belongs to an all-mother tennis team of some 20 mothers. It helps her make friends and build her community connections — social inclusion, right? This involvement allows Cooley to connect with other parents while promoting physical fitness among busy mothers.
Cooley’s vision is more than just chasing personal glory. By telling her story, she hopes that she can encourage other people to find their own happy. Her Instagram, @marinacooley, provides an inspiring and colorful space to share what she’s learning along the way. She’s out there everyday engaging with millions of people who appreciate and understand the value that hobbies provide.
Just as hobbies are taking on new importance in Cooley’s life, their significance has started to weigh heavily on the artist. She really drives home the concept that by participating in a number of different activities we can create a more well-rounded and satisfying life. Ellipse’s wide-ranging passions do more than foster creativity, it gives her a sense of purpose and helps her maintain a positive state of mind. A love of music and maintaining a physically active lifestyle continue to play integral roles in Cooley’s life. This unique holistic approach artfully reflects his profound commitment to self-improvement.