The Key to Happiness
Have you ever thought, "I'll be happy when {insert event} happens?" If so, you are probably guilty of pursuing the wrong path to happiness.
The path to happiness is to be happy.
Don't make your happiness dependent on certain events. "I'll be happy when we pay off our mortgage" is a formula designed to keep you unhappy for 30 years.
Likewise, "I'll be happy when I get promoted to Vice President" will keep you sullen for five to ten years.
Happiness is a mindset, not an outcome.
The Happiness Mindset works better than many other mindsets, including the:
- Skeptical Mindset
- Frustrated Mindset
- Suspicious Mindset
- Envious Mindset
- Angry Mindset
In 2003, the Zen master and poet Thich Nhat Hanh spoke to members of the United States Congress. He said...
We should be awakened to the fact that happiness cannot be found in the direction of power, fame, wealth and sex. If we look deeply around us, we see many people with plenty of these things, but they suffer very deeply.
Happiness is not the result of things. It is not conditional. It is a state of mind.
I know some people who are nearly always happy, and others who are nearly always unhappy. There does not seem to be many differences between these two types of people, other than with regards to how they feel.
One of the great lessons of my own life is that human beings have a much greater ability to change our reality than we realize.
If you want to be happy, be happy.
If you are not happy, it is because - at some level - you have chosen unhappiness.
Yes, I know that horrible things can happen. Even happy people experience suffering. Please don't give me eight reasons why you must spend your career or life being unhappy.
Be happy whenever humanly possible, not just when ____ happens.
Bruce Kasanoff is a ghostwriter and coach for a wide range of accomplished professionals.
Author | Publisher | Publishing Services for Authors | eBook Publishing Strategist | Musician (Senior Living Communities)
8 年Bruce, I came upon this post recently and have shared it with my readers. Such valuable advice in today's environment. Thanks for your insights!
Retired- payroll professional
9 年Thank you Bruce Kasanoff, for the great post! I chose to be happy :)
Incubating value-adding engagement between solution providers and executive decision-makers at leading companies
9 年I am reading Dr Wayne Dyer at the moment and what you say is so true. Anything associated with hedonism, narcissism and materialism is not the path to happiness. You cannot find happiness. Happiness finds you. Dr Wayne Dyer sais in one of his talks that the door to happiness opens inward towards you. Great article Bruce Kasanoff and on par with my thoughts on "the pursuit of happiness"