Elusive Happiness

20th March - The International Day of Happiness aims to make people around the world realize the importance of happiness within their lives.

This elusive concept of happiness crosses every human’s life, every day. When you talk to people with ‘acquired wisdom’, they will tell you that happiness is not a laughing matter -? happiness is inside, happiness can be achieved via meditation , happiness is in giving and sharing with the less fortunate, happiness is in meaningful work and so on. The many studies done on the blue zones will give a more practical cheatsheet of living happy and healthy.?

Happiness has more versions, so each human can have their own personal happiness calculator and formula.?

However? the world around us reminds us about why we should be sad, scared and full of anxiety, and most people are. The mental health statistics prove it. Depression and anxiety causes $1 trillion in lost productivity (of world GDP)?each year.

The World economic forum published the report of what are the biggest risks we are dealing with now, and in the next 10 years. So it is not just what you see everyday and shake hands with , but other global aspects that you make you severely, clinically unhappy.?

World Happiness Report published this week with the? usual countries on the top - Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway , Switzerland - always great to see!?

India is at 126th rank out of 146th rank, making it one of the least joyful nations.?

I will not question the methodology. I am not qualified to do so. However, I am not talking about India here (that is for another time).

How do we look at happiness then, in the context of everyday joy? If you are on LinkedIn, reading on the laptop or a device, in English , then I say we have a certain demographic here that can have ‘perhaps the similar world view of happiness’.

According to Etymology Online, the word for “happy” in most languages came from the word for “lucky.” Our ancestors believed that happiness was largely a by-product of luck.? How do we then scientifically look at ‘Happiness’??

Luck - The family you are born in, the place/ city /country and the place you live - very much luck.? Joe six packs drinking beer and watching college football vrs Ram Bharose and their earning capacity ( I hope you read Manish Sabharwal’s outstanding report) . Good weather, smooth connected?roads, ease of access to public services, not-in-your-face corruption, healthcare, safety, devoid of guns and drugs, green spaces, job opportunities, all of this is pretty much based on variables not in your hand..?

Choices - You are making choices everyday from what to eat , if /and to who to marry,?whether to have children, college, subjects or move cities or change jobs. You?prevent a version of yourself from existing by eliminating that version via your choice. There is no guarantee that the 'eliminated non-existent dead’? version of yours could be happier …

Relationships - Your meaningful social connections - how much you invest in them. And if you have the system to eliminate toxic relationships. Do you have unhealthy dependency on symbiotic relationships or do you choose to nourish yourself with multitudes of meaningful connections throughout your life, relationships with your family , children, parents , neighbors , teams, co-workers … may be happiness?

Meaningful work - And this one is not just about ‘Job’. It is what you invest your time and energy in .. may be 9 to 5 or 9 to 9 or beyond. Does this suck your energy? Do you? everyday feel like you are compromising or feel like a fake?? Does your work align with your inner axis ? It should feel like a natural flow, in equilibrium with you and your nature. The environment of where you work plays a big role too. Many organizations are leading the way to show that people can work together in a meaningful way, with a sense of belonging and purpose. Are you driven everyday to work your best , work hard , lift people up , and make teams successful? Do you have leaders who inspire you .... This may be happiness?

Relationship with money - Ethan Nichtern, the prominent Buddhist teacher, talks about the relationship with Money. Not having enough is one of the top fears crippling billions of humans worldwide. Money is abstract , from gold coins , to crypto - it continues to become more abstract - and we cling to something so abstract. Plan for retirement. Budget. Get healthcare. Get insurance.? Ethan says that we are taught to use money that isolates us. Money is an exchange. Optimizing your relationship with money, perhaps.. This might be Happiness?

Your role in society - when awkwardly in a forced situation to talk with my fellow passengers in a flight , I often ask my fellow passengers to tell me what they do and who they are devoid of their job, rank, company. Most of them just smile and think it is a joke. No it is not. Your human existence is so much more than the means of your livelihood. Playing cricket with your kids is great , but it is not that too. Your social relevance also comes from your sense of purpose and sense of contribution. Gratitude heals and helps. What role do you play in society? What you choose to do perhaps can help address the top 10 biggest risks as listed by WEF? ….. This may be happiness.?

I am sure much of your personal circumstances matter to you, India at 126th position matters to me. However, I am glad that Jenson Huang said in his talk at Stanford? ‘People with very high expectations have very low resilience, because they are not accustomed to, or prepared for, failure. Unfortunately, resilience matters in success, Greatness is not intelligence. Greatness comes from character. And character isn’t formed out of smart people, it’s formed out of people who suffered. ' “I don’t know how to do it [but] for all of you Stanford students, I wish upon you ample doses of pain and suffering.'

… between suffering and joy .. we are all building character.

All humans are making their own formula of happiness.?Happy Happiness Day!