Happiness

How to be happy is one of the most asked questions in life.

Much of what passes as knowledge is actually ancient wisdom that has been repackaged or put into modern terms or language. I am simply quoting the words I have learned even though they may have come from an earlier source. The most important thing to remember is that happiness is a state of mind.

“The most important trick to be happy is to realize that happiness is a choice that you make and a skill set that you develop. You choose to be happy, and then you work at it. It’s like building muscles.” - Naval Ravikant. It takes actually more energy to be unhappy than to be happy. The choice is easy.

“There is no happiness where there is no wisdom.” - Sophocles. Always be learning. It’s possible to be happy as a mindless clam but nobody wants to be a clam.

“I am a genius but nobody knows it but me.” - Charles Bukowski. Your life truly starts when you decide to act to be happy which is an act of genius but be humble about it.

“The most important decision you make is to be in a good mood.” - Voltaire. Be happy and be in a good mood - but I repeat myself. To do one often leads to the other.

“Be optimistic, be positive. It’s important. Optimists actually do better in the long run.” - Naval Ravikant. Have you ever met an optimistic person that wasn’t happy?

“When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love.” - Marcus Aurelius. Being happy just to be alive is not new advice but advice you should take to heart. Each day you wake on this side of the soil is a gift.

“The quality of what you pursue will determine the quality of your life. We think that things like money, status, and power will make us happy but they won’t.” - Shane Parrish. Do not waste your gift. Pursue your interests! Improve!

“The only Zen you’ll find on a mountain tops is the Zen you bring up there with you” - Alan Watts. Change what you can change and ignore the rest. Be Zen about life to be happy.

“Avoid negative people. They have a problem with every solution.” - Albert Einstein. Half of being happy is avoiding being unhappy and negative people in your orbit will make you unhappy.

That’s a short gist of what it takes to be happy. Hope you make that choice in life.