The ideal of democracy, according to the Declaration of Independence is to provide the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Notice that it doesn’t say achievement of happiness!
There aren’t any guarantees!
However, if your pursuit of happiness is to have any chance of succeeding, it seems that a good way of approaching it is to think of it as a trip, or a journey.
First, you have to know where you want to go. Then, you have to know where your starting from.
OK. That’s obvious.
So, where do you want to go? What situation will provide you with happiness?
What comprises a “happy,” or “high quality” of life?
Each of us must determine this for ourselves. And, as time goes on, the criteria for a high quality life will probably change.
For many people, this is not as easy as it sounds.
If asked you the question, “What do you want?”, you and I would probably answer, “I want to be cured of Polycystic Kidney Disease!”
And indeed we do.
We know that isn’t possible at the present time.
So, “Besides that, what do you want?”
Again, you and I may answer, “More money!”
Yes.
Let’s try another question.
“Besides being cured of PKD, if there was one thing in your life that you could change, what would it be?”
I think this is a better question. It forces you to think about all aspects of your life and to evaluate them in terms of the level of satisfaction you derive from them.
A standard list of life aspects are is the following:
- Career
- Money
- Health
- Friends and Family
- Significant Other (Romance)
- Personal Growth
- Fun and Recreation
- Physical Environment
Again this is a standard list. You are certainly free to add, subtract, or change these categories.
The idea is to rate the level of satisfaction you are deriving from each of these areas of life (or whatever your categories are) on a scale from 0-10, 10 being wonderfully fulfilled, and 0 being, well, let’s keep things polite!
This exercise will help you determine the starting point of your pursuit of happiness, and a higher quality of life!
To be continued…
Hoping to help you pursue YOUR happiness, this is
Coach Richie Perl
Certified Professional Coach
Certified Trainer of Neuro-Linguistic Programming
