Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve
to be happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against
difficulties. - Helen Keller
“What do
you want?”
Emphasis
on the want.
Every new
client hears this question during our first meeting. I usually toss my query
after hearing the subtext behind actions, and behaviors, and rarely feelings.
Wants.
Desires.
We all
have them.
Spoiler
Alert: 90% of my clients say that want to be happy.
What will
make you happy?
Is it
getting that promotion you’ve been yearning for? Is it the high-powered vehicle
cloaked in your garage? Is it losing those last five pounds?
Yes. Yes,
because you’re successful when you’ve reached your goals . . you’re happy you have a new promotion so that
you can take that Tahitian vacation or pay off your high balance/high
percentage school loans…you’re overjoyed as your shiny ponytail whips in the
wind during an afternoon convertible drive zooming on desolate roads. . .you’re
giddy you can finally fit into your 7-16 denim skinny jeans.
Are these
fleeting experiences enough to feel happy?
Happiness…is
it experienced intrinsically or extrinsically?
Psychologists
have long toyed with the definition and interpretation of the word
‘happy.’ Finding your inner gaiety does
not need to be laborious or far-reaching. You just need to change your brain.
Yes.
Change it.
Throw out
the concept of ‘positive thinking’ and embrace ‘realistic thinking.’ Express gratitude. Maybe you don’t have a
glossy Red Monster of gas guzzling endorphins on four wheels parked in your
driveway, but you do have a reliable mode of transportation to get you where
you need to be. Maybe those over-priced denims are still hanging in the back of
your closet, but you do have clothes that fit, are clean and are comfortable.
Yes, I
realize I’m presenting you with a ridiculous scale of comparison, but the truth
is that ‘happy’ can only be found from within you. Not somebody bringing you
flowers, and not the layers of shoes stacked in your closet.
Wants. Desires.
I believe success lies in being happy. Happy with who you
are and happy with what you have.
Finding your happy is a process; it’s a journey.
Happiness is perspective, reality and gratitude.
Always finding my happy,
L
