HAPPINESS IS NOT A CHOICE POSITIVITY IS - sudhanshu

GOOD FRIDAY TO YOU ALL –

- EDGING TOWARDS A GOOD SUMMER WEEKEND !!

SOME THOUGHTING !!!!

YOU ARE THE SOURCE, NOT THE SUBJECT OF HAPPINESS.

I wrote this quote a couple of days back, and some people could not comprehend the deeper meaning in this quote. They said – Happiness is a joyful creation of experiences in life. The correct perspective is Happiness or Joy is not created by something but is your innate nature in - Aham Brahma Asmi ( the Upanishad aphorism ) - I AM THAT – SAT CHIT ANAND – TRUTH BEAUTY AND JOY. You are JOY- HAPPINESS – EMBODIMENT !! You live your life out JOY AND HAPPINESS ( which you are ) NOT for HAPPINESS OY JOY. Happiness is not conditional –it ever is with you and has to be realized.

The essential art in living your life is about finding balance, happiness, contentment and being mindful about the way we spend our money, the habits that shape our lives and the values that create our culture. One of the driving forces for happiness is simplicity. We need to manage our respective complexities on a daily basis as they are embedded in our lives and unavoidable, but genius lies in transforming complexities into enriching experiences and becoming a force for good as we aspire to live a fulfilling life.

Happiness is an inside-out phenomenon. It begins with an inner peace that resonates outwardly as you interact with people. There’s no magic pill, therapy or counselling that can make you happy; it’s assigning a degree of self-worth to your own existence and then injecting proof points of actions to qualify your beliefs, role and character and build a strong foundation to enable you to live a life that celebrates your aspirations and also contributes towards others’. Happiness is rooted in empathy as it is an expression of gratitude and joy, and that can only be felt if you are able to understand what it means to feel sorrow and sadness for yourself or on behalf of others. True happiness is not just a joyful experience but also a humbling one as it makes you count your blessings; all these emotions are somehow rooted in empathy. Being empathetic is essential to enlightenment and enrichment; it’s the elixir of joy in life. Even the simple process of pausing to contemplate what makes us happy is a source of fulfilment. We should recognise that setting goals alone to attain happiness is not enough and being mindful of the ‘now’ is essential to finding that focus and inner calm to clearly understand what is valuable in life and how to move towards it. I can assure you it’s not to be found at the till of a supermarket or at the wheel of a luxury car.

Happiness is now big on the agenda of governments, with newly appointed Ministers of Happiness and Gross Happiness Indexes being showcased in the media to promote the effectiveness of empathy in governance. According to the World Happiness Report 2017, Norway was top of the global happiness ranking, closely followed by Denmark, Iceland and Switzerland. These countries had the common factors of caring, freedom, generosity, honesty, healthcare, income and good governance. Governments don’t just have an obligation to understand the issues of its people but a duty to improve the social and cultural fabric of a nation by establishing policies and frameworks that allow for tolerance, harmony and compassion to become integral parts of governance and a way of public life. If you want a country to be happy, make sure every household has something to be happy about. It’s not rocket science. This means making sure that those on the wrong side of the income gap can live a life of dignity, with comfortable housing, access to clean water, decent food and education. Give them a leg up to improve their lives and you will be amazed how a little support provides a springboard that can propel people forward.

The psychology of positivity connects happiness with success. There’s no point being the dystopic, miserable person in the room radiating cynicism. That’s not just negative for you but essentially toxic for all those around you. Being of a positive mind is critical to success. This positive approach is also complemented by understanding that you are not in control of many things that happen in your life and thus there’s no point in worrying about those things. It’s best to devote your energy to and focus on your own actions, which bring you closer to your goals.

Great leaders create value by deploying the value of those around them.

Happiness in the workplace is very important and citizens of compassion should converse, connect and collaborate to create a culture of empathy, which will result in a happier environment at work. Leaders within companies should empower their team to define and deploy their collective expressions of compassion, whether it is towards internal or external stakeholders. Great leaders lead by serving and their mandate should be to defend the collective values of the company and ensure they act as the moral compass for the company and that there is a universal convertibility of the internal goodwill and trust about a company.

Altruistic leaders are generous, kind, nurturing and compassionate; they anchor emotions and logic, balancing business objectives with uncompromising principles of good human values. These leaders have a certain philosophical viscosity that they introduce into a company; from situational leadership skills that need to be intuitive, agile and intelligent to manage tactical tasks, and then the deeper, calmer and wiser approach to achieve long-term strategic success. Sustainable prosperity is a result of collective progress, and good leaders recognise that they have an obligation to respect and value all the people who drive growth within a company. Old-school bureaucratic leadership that relies on status, position and power drains the energy of imaginative thinkers and demotivates people from demonstrating their truest potential and talent. Humility is equally important for happiness; whether you are the president of a country or a company, it’s important to be humble and inclusive. Great leaders always remain great listeners, recognising the potency of other people’s aspirations and then calibrating the collective to work with singularity and passion.

As much as there is a science to business strategies, there is also a certain art to living life, and life sit at the intersection of both, providing you with a contemplative and inspirational platform to transform your own life and live a more enriching one. The joy of life is in living it, not chasing rainbows just because everyone else is. Little blessings, simple gestures, small things – these are the things that matter more than the epic celebration of tomorrow’s dreams. Your Life is meant to inspire you to take a moment and think about your own life; ask yourself a few questions that allow you to figure out if you are spiritually, intellectually, socially, emotionally or professionally alkaline or acidic. Are your thoughts and actions a net positive contributor to your own life and those around you? If you are alkaline, then how can you share your learning to help others live with more happiness? If you are acidic, then maybe it’s time to take stock of your own actions and find a way to balance your pursuits by aligning to values and a higher purpose that make life more fulfilling.

Clichéd as it may sound, you are also who you hang out with. Spend time with people who motivate you to become better, improve and grow while celebrating who you are, what you aspire to and what makes you special. Surround yourself with people who inspire you by what they stand for and what they have achieved. I have share with a long-standing joke that we were always destined to be the poor ones among our friends as, even though we grow and succeed in our businesses, we also end up spending time with people who are more successful than us, which in principle is deliberate as it motivates us to not become complacent and continue to do more with our lives.

There’s should be no place for negativity in your life; you should be pragmatically positive in your views and opinions about how to live your life and the people you want to be around. In my life I have been left isolated, despondent and remorseful on numerous occasions, as I had to steer my life through unfamiliar waters of financial unpredictability, peculiar complexities, external pressures and all sorts of daily dramas that challenge my life. I have had to rally my people, motivate them to stay aligned to our higher purpose and continue doing extraordinary things to keep our purpose safe, even when under pressure. A sermonic leadership strategy is not going to work in these circumstances and if you find yourself in such a quandary you must lead by example, roll up your sleeves and put in the hours so the team understands that you are all in it together.

So, how do you live a plural life with a singular ideology? A plural life is one where you can ignite all your passions, fulfilling all your roles as a child, parent, partner, sibling or friend and be able to nurture your own dreams while giving hope and support to those seeking to improve their own lives. Singularity is about aligning yourself with a universal truth, something profound and meaningful that gives you direction, energy and purpose.

First, never stop loving the world. Be inquisitive and have the imagination and curiosity of a child. Always remain intrigued and ask many questions. This hard-wires your neural responses to external narratives so that you will question who is saying what about their brand or products and you will make well-informed decisions. Be curious about things like transparency and truth when it comes to the people you associate with, allowing you to figure out whether the choices you are making are going to be detrimental, neutral or positive towards your own wellbeing and that of others.

Then, equip yourself with the armour of knowledge and become self-sufficient. Don’t sponge off others. Get a job or do something you love to pay your own bills. There’s dignity in honest, hard work. Once you are on your feet, then help get others on their feet. Play an active role in your life and stand for something that’s bigger than you.

Here’s what you should ideally take away from this wisdom :

You should be able to discuss the principles of monastic materialism and mindful consumption, the rise of altruistic aesthetes, consumers seeking meaningful products and experiences that also create positive impact. You should be able to qualify edifying essentialities and apply the decision-making process based on the conscientious consumption compass, which allows you to ensure you are spending your money wisely and in ways that bring you happiness.

If you’re in business you should ideally understand the benefits of altruistic capitalism and steer your corporate culture to be one that focuses on corporate constituents and holders of shared values, all underpinned by universally sustainable principles. Empathy should not just be a management principle but a management position within your organisation.

I CONSIDER MYSELF A MATERIALIST MONK, A CONTEMPLATIVE PERSONAE, WHO IS RE-EVALUATING HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PURSUIT OF MONEY AND THE SEARCH FOR VALUE AND LIVING A MEANINGFUL LIFE. LIKE ANY MONASTIC ENDEAVOUR, THIS JOURNEY IS AN INNER ONE, REFLECTIVE AND CONTINUOUSLY ENLIGHTENING. I AM A STUDENT WHO TEACHES, AND A TEACHER OBSESSED WITH REMAINING A STUDENT.

I have written this fb post as a guide to help shape a better way of life, both for myself and for my readers. Compassion is a source, not a solution; it should allow you to shape your own doctrine about a meaningful life and allow you to elevate your aspirations for whatever role you might consider in a manner that is kind and caring towards one and all. The propositions and principles I present here should prompt a contemplative analysis about what really makes you happy and how you can reach a sense of contentment, without getting trapped in a lifestyle that pollutes your life with unnecessary static and noise. Life is too short to waste it dwelling on the inconsequential, and it takes time and effort to evaluate what is worth nourishing and what should be rejected.

The evolution of the human mind starts with a single new thought.

What’s yours?

MUCH LOVE

sudhanshu