Sometimes it seems like we are always striving for more more more. Are there times you are content with what you already have?
Share why if you wish.
Category: Happiness
How Does Your Pet Bring You Joy?
Pets can bring great happiness to their companions — this is one of the great benefits of having a pet, in fact. If you have a pet, how does she or he bring you joy?
Share why if you wish.
How Do You Find Peace When You Need It?
In an increasingly fast-paced world where we are constantly surrounded by an uncountable number of distractions, it would help our minds to find peace and calm. But how?
Our phones light up, ding, and send us messages constantly. Cable news channels quickly scroll one scoop after another while talking heads yell more than report. Personal and work emails demand immediate attention, or else they’ll clog up our mailboxes. And our competitive ways plague adults and children alike.
But these issues are mundane when compared to other matters. For instance, today’s children practice active shooter drills. And we’re living on a planet that’s becoming less hospitable with every passing year.
Listen to a podcast where Michael and Lee discuss a related question: ‘Are we too busy?’ We also discuss a bonus question: ‘What are our responsibilities to others?’
We live in a high-stress world, and thus, many of us are highly-stressed people. While anyone, at any age, may excusably be on edge, others experience diagnosable anxiety. Nearly one-fifth of the population suffers from this mood disorder each year, and roughly a third will experience it in their lifetime.
It would do us a world of good to experience peace. So, what do you do to escape it all?
Do you meditate or practice yoga? Do you find peace in a place of worship? Perhaps a nature hike calms you down. Or listening to music relaxes your mind and body. Possibly, like me, you head out to your garden to weed or just take in your surroundings.
How do you find peace when you need it?
Related questions: What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Peace or discomfort? How do you perform self-care? Is our attention fractured?
What Do You Wish You Were Doing?
If money, time, expertise, or other limiting factors were not an issue, what would you choose to do? In other words, if you could do exactly what you wish to do, what would it be?
Too often, we get hung up on reasons we cannot do something. It takes too long to learn how to do it. It doesn’t pay enough to support me full time (or is too expensive for a hobby). I’m not good enough, or there are too many people who are better than I am.
As a thought experiment, what would you do if none of that mattered?
Listen to a podcast where Michael and Lee discuss the related question: ‘How do you define success?’ We also discuss a bonus question: ‘Is happiness the most important purpose in life?’
Obviously, some of these things do matter. If, for example, your dream is to play basketball in the NBA and you are 5’5″ and 50 years old, your dreams simply aren’t realistic.
Some hurdles are insurmountable. But most aren’t, and it is important to know the difference.
A big part of that is narrowing down what you really want to be doing. If you dream of being a rock star and playing in sold out arenas, is your dream to play music, to entertain people, or to be famous? The answer could change what the obstacles are to achieving your dream, and could point you in the direction to start.
But the very first step is to dream. In your dream, with no one or no thing standing in your way, how do you see yourself? What do you wish you were doing?
Related questions: What makes you the happiest? What do you want? To what should we aspire? What do you do with a day off work?
What Brings You The Most Joy?
There are many things that can motivate you: fear, hope, anger, desire. One of the more overlooked emotions is joy. What brings you the most joy?
Negative emotions can be channeled into positive action. For example, if you are afraid of losing your job, you might try to impress the people you work for and with.
Listen to a podcast where Michael and Lee discuss the related question: ‘How can we maintain wonder?’ We also discuss a bonus question: ‘How do you think others see you?’
However, positive emotions are very valuable as well. Experiencing joy can be exhilarating, and the desire to recapture that feeling can be very powerful.
In order to have a repeat experience, however, it helps to know just what, exactly, brings you joy.
Can you think of times in your life when you have felt joyous? What did those moments have in common? And what might you do in order to feel that way again?
Related questions: How can we increase joy? How can you take joy from joyless tasks? What makes you the happiest?