So you’ve come here to learn my secrets to happiness, but the first thing you must know is that this isn’t a solution for all people, nor is it a simple one.
To start, I’ll detail that happiness isn't something you should be chasing because it is a temporary state of emotion. Rather, you should be seeking contentment. In order to do so, you should abide by the four following guidelines.
1. Remove your ego
You, nor I, nor anybody else, is greater than the person next to them, yet some people convince themselves that they are and that’s precisely the problem. If you view yourself one way and pride yourself on that identity, then you’ll be hurt when others contradict your identity. By having an ego, you’ll be continuously comparing yourself to others, resulting in either a toxic positive or negative mindset. Negative in that you will feel lesser than others, or positive in that you will talk down to others and reject their opinions because you feel superior.
2. Be Present
Remove your focus from the future or the past. Those two states will keep you operating in your mind, but you want to step outside your mind and experience the present. To do so, you need to find a focal point that will draw your attention back to the present whenever your mind begins to wander. I, for example, stare intensely at my watch to clear my head and recenter myself. When you operate in the present, your worries melt away and temporarily cease to exist. Everything you experience feels lighter and has no emotional or physical weight to it.
3. Experience: Think Less, Act More
The reason many of us cherish our childhood is not solely because we lacked responsibilities back then, but also because we acted more impulsively and without restrictions. Nowadays, we too often consider the rate of success to a point of paralyzing action. “It’s not worth it, it won’t pay off, and I'm not ready yet.” Children are more prone to action because their mind does not produce such mental obstacles and there are no previous failures that pull them away from the path they wish to pursue.
4. No Attachment
A large source of suffering is our attachment to outcomes or results. It essentially boils down to the following phrase: “but I wanted it, and I deserve it.” If that’s your response anytime something is stripped away from you, then you likely have a great deal of attachment.
That’s about it, see ya.
