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The Pursuit of Happiness
By karen | December 14, 2006
We all want to be happy. It seems to be one of the constants in the human condition; we all strive to be happy.
Many of us look outside of ourselves for happiness. We look for someone else to make us happy in that magical and elusive relationship. We look for our work to make us happy as we chase the dream of career success. Some of us are waiting to be happy, waiting until we lose weight, waiting for that promotion, waiting until our ship comes in.
We spend our days in the relentless pursuit of happiness when we all have the keys now to being happy and we have always held the keys.
Happiness does not come from outside of ourselves. Happiness is an inside job. Just as
Abe Lincoln said back those many years ago, most people really are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. But there are some tools that we can use to increase our happiness and help us to find it inside of ourselves where it has been all along.
The first tool is the emotion of Gratitude. Begin to realize and reflect upon the things that you have in your life to be grateful for. Every one has things to be grateful for. It doesn’t have to be a huge thing; sometimes the small things are the most rewarding. The clothes on your back, your senses that help you experience the world, the joy in a child’s laughter, the random act of kindness performed by a stranger, all of these things are things to be grateful for. Reflect upon these wonderful things that you have in your life and feel the Gratitude. Really feel it, feel that wonderful joy of gratitude and reflect upon how lucky you are to be you.
The second tool is the emotion of Love. All of us love somebody. Friends, family, significant others, even pets, we all love somebody. So remember that person that you love and find a way to love them more, love them stronger, and love them bigger. What can you do today to make their life easier, more fun, and more enjoyable? What can you do for them? Don’t ask what they can do to make you feel more loved or what they can do to make your life more enjoyable; that will not bring you lasting happiness. It may be wonderful and you may feel happy for a moment but that feeling will be fleeting compared to the happiness you feel when you open up your heart and do something just for them.
The third tool is the emotion of Awe. We live in an incredible Universe. There are a million things to feel Awe about. The absolute beauty of nature, the enormous advances we have made as a human race in the fields of medicine, technology and more. The fact that there is such abundance in the Universe that each and every one of us can be, do or have just about anything we want. The only true limitations are the limitations in our own minds. The freedom that can never be taken from us is the freedom of thought; nobody can determine what we think but ourselves. If we can think it, we can achieve it, we can dream it and we can enjoy those dreams, in our minds and in our lives.
So if you want to be happy, truly, truly happy, focus on these three emotions. Gratitude, Love and Awe, keep your mind on these and happiness will be yours.
I am very happy that this article was included in the the Happiness Carnival January 13, 2007 edition. You can see all of the fine articles that are included at http://www.thinkhappythoughts.com/
I am pleased to announce that this article is featured on the Creating a Better Life The Personal Development Carnival-December 17,2006.
Please visit the Carnival to read some of the other fine articles that are posted.
Popularity: 3% [?]
Topics: Personal Development, Living the Power, Motivation and Inspiration, Reflections, Gratitude and Appreciation |
December 15th, 2006 at 6:26 am
Great Post Karen! You’re absolutely right.
We like the benefits of change, but we don’t like the process.
But it’s the process, not the results, from where the real benefits come.
Whether it’s physical, emotional, psychological, spiritual, professional, social or financial growth your after…. be prepared to get uncomfortable on a regular basis and you will dramatically improve your chances of creating your best life.
By the way, the minute you make that uncomfortable decision, or do that uncomfortable thing you’ve been avoiding, the change process becomes instantly easier and your chances of success go through the roof … because you got your head and heart (thinking, attitude, standards, emotions) where they need to be.
And you did what you needed to do.
Keep up the great writing Karen!
December 17th, 2006 at 8:57 pm
[…] Karen Lynch presents The Pursuit of Happiness posted at LivethePower. […]
December 17th, 2006 at 11:28 pm
Thanks for the link back, Karen! This is one great article, and it was a welcome addition to the carnival.
January 16th, 2007 at 10:01 am
[…] Karen Lynch presents The Pursuit of Happiness posted at LivethePower. […]
July 21st, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Happiness is the “way” not the “end”. If you live your life trying to grab at happiness, it will slip through your hands. But, if you decide that you are going to be happy along the way the joy becomes abundant.
October 21st, 2007 at 9:26 am
[…] 2. The Pursuit of Happiness from December 14, 2006. […]