Many people want to know what makes them happy, believing that reaching one’s goals regardless of what they may be, will do the job. However, this is not the case as I have learned from those who are a lot smarter than I am over the years.
Those who have come to make incredible wealth gain much more happiness from giving it away. I have heard this on many occasions when billionaires have been interviewed on this topic.
The other thing that is really important is to be doing work that you are interested in doing and find fun. The reason someone like Warren Buffet is still investing is because he finds it fun playing the game of investing. The reason I will never retire is because I love the work that I do – all of the creative and analytical aspects of it work to make it fun and endlessly interesting.
I speak about one’s environment a lot on this page because this too is something that comes up a lot both in my reading and listening to those who study the subject. Plus, I have found for myself my environments were integral to either making me truly miserable or really happy both personally and professionally. When an environment did not work out, I walked away.
There is a way to live one’s life to bring happiness and that is by being willing to do what many will not. That is by assessing how you are spending your time, with whom you are spending your time, how you are gaining your income, and how you are utilizing your income.
It is also important to live without regrets for poor decisions made because we all make them. It is all part of learning how to live life. It is also important to do all those things you desire to do and stop making excuses and rationalizations about why you can’t do them. I have written many times in these posts that I never allowed an interesting or fun opportunity even if it scared the hell out of me, to get away from me. The gift of doing that gave me immense satisfaction, meeting amazing people doing amazing things all over the world, and learning that I am much more capable of doing things I did not believe I was because I stretched myself to learn how to do them. And, by doing those things I grew a lot!
It is also important to figure out what parts of yourself you love so you will take better care of yourself. This sense of self-love will also give you a sense of self-respect. So, you will no longer worry about what others think about you and instead will take your time and income to focus on how you can make others’ lives better because when one feels good about one’s self, one will always work to make others’ lives better. It is those who are miserable who are always looking to tear others down regardless of the amount of money and expensive toys they may own.
Being much more intentional in life is how one is able to become much happier. It helps to be willing to clear out all those out-lived defense mechanisms that run your life, and it helps to forgive those who you feel harmed you, which is a foundational piece of all the work I do with all my clients who have experienced traumas that have decreased their sense of happiness even after they have made all the changes suggested above.
