It is OK to want more than you currently own in terms of your personal or professional life. In fact it is good and healthy to have goals and dreams. However it is not healthy to base your happiness on the achievement of those goals.
That is a sure-fire path to unhappiness for a number of reasons. First because you are putting off happiness while you work toward your goal -- many goals that are worth attaining will take a long time to reach. Do you want to be unhappy for all that time?
Second life is full of surprises and the best-laid plans sometimes change. If you are basing your happiness on the end goal then you might miss a great deal of happiness (not to mention opportunities for even more happiness) by not allowing yourself the flexibility to adjust your path or even change your mind.
Third you may well be placing your happiness beyond your reach. Sometimes, due to circumstances beyond our control, we do not attain our personal or professional goals. Sometimes we can do everything within our power and everything possible -- and we still fail. Failure is a natural result of living a full life and it does not naturally lead to disaster. Sometimes failure simply leads to another opportunity or goal. However if you have tied your happiness to the success of a goal then failure can certainly mean disaster for you.
So how do you make your own happiness? You SOW it with this three-step plan:
1. See Your World
2. Open Yourself Up To The World
3. Will It To Happen
What does SOW your own happiness mean?
Often we close ourselves off from the world around us. We are busy dealing with the details and stresses of our life. We drive right by interesting opportunities on our way to work or school, the grocery store, and home. When was the last time you simply stopped to observe the people, the buildings, and the landscape of the world you live in? When was the last time you took a walk or a hike to experience first-hand the unique climate and landscape of your region?
Often simply placing ourselves within the larger landscape can help put our lives and problems back into perspective. Often simple observation and the act of opening our eyes, minds, and hearts to the opportunities that surround us can lead to untold happiness.
In the end, we hold the key to our own happiness. We have to ready ourselves for the potential and then we can make it happen.
Now go out and SOW your own happiness.
Deanna Mascle shares more inspirational articles at Best Inspiration Online and Advice For Life
Join Us
Fall Meeting October 30 -31 & Novermber 1 - 2 , 2010
We welcome anybody that wants to start a Withdraw Center or wants to join the Oregon Coastal Center. There are no dues, fees or costs.
We will be holding two identical Sessions this fall. One session on the weekend and one during the week. Both Sessions will be about our experiences with our Peaceful Preparer Center, our plans, our dreams, our fears, and brainstorming.
There is no charge for either Session if you provide your own lodging. If you want to stay at the meeting resort, the following is the pricing for Eagle Crest lodging.
We ARE NOT “back to landers.” We do not want the hardships of homestead. Instead, we like our comforts and are willing to prepare for them to continue. That is why we have picked the Eagle Crest Resort for our First Annual Fall Meeting. The Eagle Crest Resort has all the comforts you want in a resort. Just check the features of Eagle Crest Resort
If two people want to share a bedroom, then both can attend the Sessions with no additional fees. The bedrooms vary with king size beds, queen size beds and twin beds.
The early bird gets their choice.
Session # I - October 30 - 31, 2010 2 nights ($100/night*) - Starts on Friday night October 30 at 7 pm and last until 11 am on Sunday November 1, 2010.
Session #2 - November 1 - 2, 2010 - 2 nights ($100/night*) - This part starts on Sunday night and 7 pm and last until Wednesday at 11 am.
*Lodging Scholarships are available.
The above fees include lodging at the Eagle Crest at Redmond, Oregon (11 miles from Bend, Oregon)
