“Pinch of passion; Life-long laziness; my story is the one of chasing happiness. ”
This is what I wrote when I was asked to write my story in a few words. Even Thomas Jefferson talks about “The pursuit of happiness” in the declaration of independence.
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
– Thomas Jefferson
But why is happiness bought up time and again when we talk about the ultimate goal? Because it is the end goal!
Ask yourself, “Would I like to die rich or die happy?”. I bet the latter one is the answer.
And the reason why happiness will be the answer is that it is the exact opposite of the three things we don’t want:
1. Anxiety
Globally, 1 in 13 people suffers from anxiety. Anxiety kills happiness. Taking stress all day. Worrying about ‘Do I want the job or not?’, ‘Will I get the funding for my new venture?’, ‘What if it fails?’, etc. has boosted anxiety growth.
If happiness would have been everyone’s goal, “Anxiety” would remain merely a word in the dictionary.
2. Depression
300 million people around the world are depressed, according to the world health organization. The thoughts of ‘What will people think?’, ‘What if she breaks up?’, ‘I have to make six-figure income’, and many more leads to unhappiness.
People with an end-goal to be happy are rarely depressed. They do what they want. A friend of mine quit his IT job, joined a coworking space, and started freelancing as a digital marketer.
In short, a realization that “happiness is the ultimate goal”, makes life blissful.
3. Regrets
Research shows that people with material goals regret not doing what they loved. Chasing happiness eliminates that possibility.
And therefore, happiness should be the goal of life.
Final Words
Everyone’s definition of success is different. They should be. But if the mention of “happiness” isn’t in that definition, the definition needs to be changed.
What are your thoughts on this?