Happiness

When I consider the questions: "What do I want? What would make me happy? How do I follow my bliss?" I usually begin by thinking about external sources: owning a hostel, living in the tropics, reveling in harmonious companionship... But then I realize that happiness only comes from within; I have to start there, or no external component will bring any lasting joy. So I end up changing my answers to things like inner-peace, self-contentedness, challenges to grow from, personal goals to work on, self-discipline, motivation, good-will, and wisdom.

There's a concept regarding one's approach to life called "Be-Do-Have." It's often referred to as a paradigm shift because most people do not automatically operate in this fashion. We usually, mistakenly, tend to go: 1 - have (money, time, spouse, etc), 2 - do (adventures, projects, activities, etc), 3 - be (happy, successful, fulfilled, etc). However, the best results actually come from functioning in the opposite order. First, you choose to be the person you want to be by asking yourself what that person would do, then doing those things, and in turn, gaining the things that person would have. In the end, if your goal is simply happiness, it's pretty easy to choose to be a happy person. (Easier than, say, becoming a millionaire, anyway.) It is a tricky business though, shifting a major paradigm. But I keep working on it :)

Here's a smile for the road -