The True Cause of Happiness: How to Abandon the 10,000 Hour Rule and Achieve Inner Peace

Principles and Strategies for a Happy Life According to Buddhism and Psychology

The 10,000 Hour Rule by Gladwell Sounds Good, But It's Not True

Everyone knows the 10,000 hour rule by Gladwell, right? You might be surprised to hear that it's not as accurate as we thought.

Why Focusing on Diverse Fields is Key to Success

Focusing on one field may help you become an expert, but it won't make you uniquely exceptional. On the other hand, people who focus on a wide range of fields build more connections in the brain. This allows them not only to be experts in their field but also to apply insights from one field to another. For example, I have an education in communications, electronics, management, electricity, finance, and telecom – and it all integrates into my activities.

Zen Buddhism: A Practical Tool for Applying Psychological Insights

When psychologist Professor Marsha Linehan researched the main causes of human suffering, she found that suffering is not related to the amount of difficulty we face. Difficulty will always exist.

The Real Problem: Clinging to Suffering

People who suffer the most are those who cling to their suffering. Think about a difficulty in your life, small or large, that cannot be changed. How many times in the past day have you wished things were different? The people who suffer the most have thought about their difficulties at least six times in the past day and wished the situation were different.

The Three Principles of Happiness: Acceptance, Non-Resistance, and Energy Utilization

The happiest people are not without difficulties; they are those who:

1. Accept the difficulty
2. Do not try to fight it
3. Save their energy for things that can be changed

Nirvana According to Buddhism

In Buddhism, "Dukkha" refers to any experience of discomfort or dissatisfaction that accompanies our lives. "Dukkha" stems from two things: craving – the desire to achieve things we don't have, and clinging – the attempt to hold onto what we already have. This desire creates ongoing suffering because reality is never constant.

Meditation: Myth and Reality

There's a myth that meditation is just sitting upright with closed eyes. People who practice meditation, for example, won't eat just like that; they have a high awareness of hunger and thirst. The connection with internal sensations increases.

The Neural Signature of Resilience

When meditators (who have practiced meditation for at least 7 years) are exposed to a few seconds of intense pain, they are told they will hear a sound and ten seconds later feel sharp pain. Subjects who have not practiced meditation show a high pattern of activity in pain areas immediately upon hearing the sound, during the pain, and for a long time after the pain disappears. Conversely, when meditators hear the sound, there is no activity in the pain area of the brain. When the pain arrives, they show a sharp pain response, and once the pain is gone, they immediately return to baseline.

This is the neural signature of resilience – they don't worry before it's necessary, and they don't hold onto the pain after it's gone.

Summary

If you want to achieve Nirvana and improve your quality of life, combining Zen Buddhism and psychology might be the key.

Keywords: happiness, inner peace, 10,000 hour rule, Zen Buddhism, psychology, meditation, Nirvana, mental resilience, Professor Marsha Linehan