2/23/20
Happiness is elusive. Unfortunately, happiness has no universal formula. It never will. If it was that easy, everyone would be happy. Nonetheless, happiness is something that we can recognize, learn, and optimize for. If you prioritize it and pursue it in this way, real progress in quality of life is achievable. Happiness should come first.
Like I said, there's no universal formula, but for me, there are some variables that we can investigate and improve. Although it will be different for everyone, and perhaps these lessons won't hit home with everyone, I want to start this five part series about ways that I think about being happier. To me, they are levers to pull in order to make small steps in the right direction and focus on what really contributes to happiness.
I'll start with #1: exploring the importance of passionate work, and turning it into your "not work."
We can't lie to ourselves, we all need money to survive in this world. People like to say "money can't buy happiness," and that's true to some extent: past a point, more material things will not help you be happier. Funding experiences and supporting relationships may receive no extra benefit as a billionaire rather than a multi-millionaire. However, without any money at all you'll surely be unhappy and constantly struggling. Sure, you can be a monk and possibly be immensely happy, but that's not realistic for most people. So, we agree that you need money, but how to get it? The way I see it, the only answer is by doing what you love.
For me, it comes down to identifying your passions and chasing them in a way where work is no longer a burden, but a serious contributor to your daily happiness. Before I go any further, I want to point out that I'm still a college student. All of what I say are ideas that I have adopted from bits and pieces of some of my mentors' lives and lessons, and I believe that the general thoughts are essential to consider in living a happy life. Also, these points are still applicable before entering your career. If you're a college student, as I am, it's possible to structure your learning, ambitions, or goals in a way that accommodates passionate work.
Much of the time, work is an unpleasant barrier that continues to get in the way of achieving your consistent happiness. We allow ourselves to think "I'll be happy when..." Whether it's a possible promotion, an upcoming easing of your schedule, or some other milestone, it's natural to envision your life being better after it. Unfortunately, our society is structured in a way where most people drag through work constantly in this way: people aren't enjoying the work for the work itself...
A majority of your life is spent working. For many people, it's a 9 to 5 gig every weekday. Your excitement comes from nearing Friday or those milestones I was talking about... but what if the work itself was what you loved? What if you got paid and made a living by doing something you enjoyed every moment of? That would be liberating. Now that huge chunk of your life isn't something you're running from but looking forward to.
When you achieve that, your "work" all of a sudden becomes your "not work." You're internally driven to spend the time and effort, rather than just doing it for a paycheck. As a bonus, that'll actually translate to higher quality and volume of your work. People always emphasize work ethic, and it's clear that work ethic is important to get paid more, but when your long, hard work is unforced, it doesn't feel like an intense work ethic. Instead, you're energized and motivated. That's the zone where the most financially successful people harness their "work ethic" from.
Another thing I want to highlight is that the happiness you'll get from pursuing your "not work" means more than most differences in pay. Consider a choice between two jobs. In accepting one, you'll earn 120k a year, and the other means 80k a year. On paper you might think it's a no-brainer, but in the first you dread each day, escape the workplace at all costs, and make up for it by buying a nice jacket, or something. The second, you're fully present, fired up most mornings (everyone still can have a few bad days), and your Tuesday feels like a Friday. If I was presented with this situation, I'd take option 2 all day. To me it's worth more than a third of your potential salary to be significantly happier consistently.
We live in a period of previously unmatched opportunity. Before, the only way to make money was to conform to your surroundings. You would've had to surrender your passions for realism and secure a steady pay check to just survive. Now, mostly thanks to the wild powers of the internet, a career is possible doing almost anything. Want to have a career in spearfishing? There's an audience out there for you. How about making money eating pizza? Yup, that's been done. No matter what your passion is, there's a community accessible through the internet that have similar interests and are waiting to consume a product, info, or entertainment in any topic. Much of the success of a business is determined by reaching the market for it, and today that's easier than ever.
If you agree with me, you may be asking yourself a few questions. Here are some qualms I've heard before..
- What if I love something and get excited to work, but it fizzles out?
This is something I've experienced, and I think we all have. It's not something to be ashamed of. It's easy to get embarrassed that your commitment level faded, but really it's a good thing! In my opinion, if your interest fades, your pursuit was not your "not work." It wasn't your true love, and there's something else out there that will be sustainable, you just haven't found it. Another important idea to come to terms with is that change is a good thing. If you decide today you want to be a lawyer but in two months you are convinced you'll make a happier journalist, that's OK. It's natural for us to change our minds and it's healthy to grow on from something. Where it becomes a problem is usually in worrying about what others will think, which isn't as relevant as you may think.
- How do I find what I love?
I think this is probably the biggest challenge we face in this topic. It is certainly not easy to find your calling. The thing is, when you find it you know beyond all doubts. It's something where, as I said, working long and hard doesn't feel long or hard. It feels natural and exciting to be productive and complete work that is so satisfying. In my opinion, until you've found that, it's important to just try as many things as possible. If it takes a month, a year, or more, it'll be worth it. It'll mean sacrificing time and becoming frustrated or unusually impatient, but the reward is a much more extended and deeper upside than that temporary downside.
The way society is right now, you need to work to enjoy the basic necessities of a comfortable and happy life. What you decide to do will undoubtedly take up significant time and energy. In order to maximize long term happiness, which I think should be your real goal, it's important to consider overlaying passion with this need for work. In doing so, you'll not only enjoy more of your life, but it'll translate to better, more motivated work which will grow to make you more money as a nice side effect.
Life's too short to do shit you hate.
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