How to Be Happy

(Friday Filosophy 8/18/23)

Happy Freakin’ Friday!

Here's your weekly postcard from me with a question, topic, or challenge to contemplate, coming to you today from Salt Lake City. This week let’s explore something simple and easy like, what is the meaning of life?

Okay that may take a little more space than we have here, but we can chunk it down to what causes happiness.  Here's my posit. There are four things that cause you to be happy.

• You choose it. Happiness really is a choice. You're going to encounter all kinds of challenges in life, many ups and many downs.  If you don't mindfully choose a happy perspective, happiness will elude you, no matter your level of wealth, accomplishments, and external factors.
• The people you allow to speak into your life. You don’t control everyone you interact with, but you have tremendous agency over who gets to be included in your inner circle. Find people who call you to the higher version of yourself.
• How you treat your body. You don't "find" energy, you manufacture it with the fuel you eat and drink. Other habits like exercise, sleep, and reflection time play a major role as well.
• What you work on. To be happy requires fulfillment and meaning, and that entails doing work that matters.  For some, this means finding a career in a field that improves humankind in some ways.  For others it might be a day job as a housekeeper, but doing volunteer work, being a foster parent, or saving the rainforest.

So how are you doing in these areas?

Peace,

- RG

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