I would like to share some thoughts today about happiness. Why not? I thought. Everybody wants to be happy but this happiness thing seems so elusive to most people, sometimes even myself. I grew up in a dysfunctional family where my parents used to argue on a monthly basis. At one point, I was only 19 years old and I don’t even feel like living anymore. Emotionally, I was already at rock bottom.
Later in life, I figured if happiness is so important, why am I not learning more about this topic? Today, I would like to share some things I learnt along the way and maybe it might be able to help you view the world differently.
Being involved in cryptocurrencies, I have seen how greed had blinded Bitcoiners and take away their moral values. They make condescending comments like “Have fun being poor.” to put down others. I will just quote Dalai Lama, “Self-centered attitude and greed are the root of all problems. The interesting thing about greed is that although the underlying motive is to seek satisfaction, even after obtaining what you want, you’re still not satisfied. It’s this endless, nagging desire for more that leads to trouble. On the other hand, if you’re truly contented, it doesn't matter whether you get what you want or not. Either way, you remain content.”
If you want to be good at happiness, then you must practice the ability to be content and grateful about your current life. If everyone has to wait for their lives to be perfect in order to be happy, then it is no wonder why happiness can be so elusive.
Another common problem that prevents people from being happy is when they start to believe they needed to become a millionaire or the boss of a company or someone famous in order to be happy. You see commercials telling you that you need to buy their products to slim down to be happier or to buy their expensive mattresses to sleep better. I believe that no mattress in the world can make you sleep better when your mind is ill. I also believe if your mind is peaceful, you can sleep well even on the ground.
The mind is a powerful tool. Just like you have to exercise regularly to have a fit body, you would need to train your mind regularly to keep it healthy.
Dr Strange: How do I get from here to there?
The Ancient One: How did you become a doctor?
Dr Strange: Study and practice, many years of it.
If you have problems in your life right now, there are 2 ways to look at it. One way is to feel upset at having problems. The other way is to accept that everyone has problems and this is an opportunity to train your mind. It is easy to have a peaceful mind when everything is going well but the training of the mind can only begin when things are not going well. The toughest people I know overcame huge adversities in their lives.
It is easier said than done. I know this very well myself. No matter how much I read and practice, I still find myself vulnerable at times. I had to constantly remind myself when my emotions got the better of me. I had to constantly remind myself that I am the master of my emotions and not let my emotions become the master of me.
Life is short. Happiness can be a choice. You're either busy living or busy dying. Make your choice today.
This is awesome 👍 I agree with everything you said. Happiness is a choice, it's about our satisfaction towards something, no matter if we are at the peak of what we wanted to achieve if our mind is still ill, happiness will still be elusive.