Russell Brand was asked one day in a TV interview if he was happy.
“I’m happy right now” he replied.
To which the interviewer said – “But do you worry you might revert to unhappiness again then?”
Brand replied, “Well…I don’t know if I’ll be happy in an hour or in the morning – but I’m not worried about it, I love what I’m doing, and I love my life generally”.
Great answer.
We may have a right to pursue happiness – but it’s a wrong goal on which our society places far too much emphasis. The consequence of this over-focus on ‘achieving happiness’ is a rising sense of discontent or a growing sense of ‘lost-ness’ in many people who judge themselves for their inability to get and stay happy. So much time and energy is lost this way – and with it goes our health.
Far better I think is to pursue meaning through doing meaningful work.
Meaningful work – in one way or another – always involves helping solve some sort of problem and thus alleviating a burden. Whether that burden is yours or someone else’s makes no difference, it’s equally valuable and satisfying.
Doing meaningful work on a consistent basis requires discipline.
Discipline feels like the opposite of freedom but is in fact a necessary ingredient of becoming free – and happy. Freedom is the freedom to choose our stresses – rather then be saddled with chronic unproductive stress.
If you are having no success getting pregnant despite trying lots of different things – ask yourself if you are pursuing happiness instead of meaning – this will help focus your mind and free you up to choose the stresses you want rather than getting the one’s life throws at you.
