Would a few million dollars, a personal chef, and a regular house cleaner make you happy? Would it, really? Do you know what makes you happy? Let's discuss...
Money, fame, power, freedom, success, friendships, forgiveness, health, a new car, a new house, a month-long holiday three times a year, a partner, a child, a waist. The list is endless. Would any of these things make you happy? What about ALL of these things?
What if I told you that happiness is NONE of those things?
Well, not if you don't already have them. Let me explain.
Okay, yeah, I feel like I might be happy for a while living in a mortgageless beachfront property as a wealthy and successful author/artist with thousands of followers and speaking engagements and a pretty black pug girl named Gypsy. That sounds pretty happy to me. But, I'd run the risk of the happiness being short-lived. It would probably wear off.
Why? Because all of those things would become my new normal...
and then I'd want more!
Do you know why I know this?
Because if I am always focussed on the things I DON'T have and relying on the acquisition of those things to give me happiness, then I am FAILING at happiness.
I am not professing to have the key to happiness, but I do know that where you FOCUS YOUR ATTENTION, makes a big difference.
If I think that money, a mansion, or an award, will genuinely improve my setpoint of everyday happiness after I have it, then I am setting myself up for disappointment. I am focussing on what I don't have, and there will ALWAYS be things that I don't have.
An absolutely critical component of everyday happiness, is GRATITUDE.
Gratitude refocuses my attention on what I DO have.
Are you picking up what I'm laying down here?
If we are looking at what could make you happy, THAT YOU DON'T HAVE, then you're looking in the wrong place and it isn't going to work.
May I propose a shift in thinking? Instead, think about the things THAT YOU DO HAVE that make you happy. How about:
A healthy child
A home
A job
Hot running water
Doggy cuddles
Essential oils
A beautiful sunrise
Stargazing
A hot cup of coffee
A warm, snuggly blanket
A relationship
A spectacular Marketplace find
Your favourite book or coffee shop
The smell of rain
A good sleep
A crunchy apple
Birdsong
The list is endless. I bet, when you think about it, there are HUNDREDS of things that make you happy that are real and present. That are part of your life now, JUST AS IT IS.
I also bet, that if you focus on THAT list of things, then you will be a lot happier than grumbling about your messy house, the followers you don't have, the job that's not yours, and the relationship that fell apart, or the opportunity you missed out on.
I think that is one of the biggest reasons why prayer makes me a happier person (I mean, if you remove the God factor - LOL!). I give thanks. I focus on the things that I am grateful for.
Okay, now I'm not saying here that you shouldn't clean your house, grow your business, or go after that job you want. You absolutely should. You NEED to examine your failures in order to learn and grow, and you should push yourself to be your best.
But,
genuine happiness
can be ours
wherever we are,
if we focus on the right stuff.
Do you agree? Think about it and let me know (find me on Facebook).
Much love,
Marley
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