Happiness is a Choice

Are you happy?

Seems like a simple question. But it’s not so simple, is it? What’s interesting is that much of our lives are spent unhappily pursuing things that only make us “happy” for a fleeting moment.  

A 2010 study by Diener, Kahneman, and others published in Perspectives on Psychological Science compared the happiness of people in various countries, focusing on material wealth versus psychological well-being. 

The study found that while Americans often pursue happiness through consumption and accumulation of material goods, reflecting a cultural belief in abundance, this approach may lead to a relative sense of scarcity when comparing oneself to others. In contrast, many other cultures emphasize relational abundance (family, community), which is often more strongly correlated with happiness. (https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1011492107)

This and other similar studies seem to confirm what we already intuitively know to be true:

You can’t buy happiness. But we also can’t ignore the effect that money has on our overall feeling of satisfaction and happiness in life. I would propose that it’s not money but abundance that brings us a true sense of happiness. 

Abundance = Happiness

The key to living a happy life is (1) understanding what abundance truly is and (2) deciding if that’s what you want out of life. I believe that when we get a clear picture of TRUE abundance, deep down, it is what we all are really after. Happiness is simply a bi-product of abundance.

So what is abundance? I think we all can agree that it’s not just having a lot of money or stuff. It has to be more than that. TRUE abundance really comes down to four things:

Time

Relationships

Understanding

Energy 

You’ll notice that money is not on that list. But money does play a role in each of those things. And it’s when we disproportionately spend our money on things not on that list, or when these things get out of balance that we start to become dissatisfied with life.

Time is...

You’ve no-doubt heard the expression that “Time is money.” An oversimplification, and perhaps a by-product of our largely hourly-based wage system. But if that’s true, then the opposite is also true. Money is time. The difference is, once you’ve spent time, you can never get it back.

For so many people, what does more money mean? It means they can spend more time doing the things they want to do, rather than working. 

So many people (myself included, until recently) spend the majority of our lives seeking to have just enough to get by. It seems like the reasonable thing, right? After all, seeking after more than enough sounds greedy. The problem with the just-enough mindset is that it is short-sighted. It does not account for the inevitable ups-and-downs in life, let alone transitioning into a work-optional life and building generational wealth. 

Truth be told, I always considered those things as nice-to-haves, not needs, per se. But the reality of life is that we will all get to that point when we need to slow down and eventually stop working—whether by choice or due to declining health as we age. And if you don’t have enough to sustain you through that time—however long or short it is—then you can forget about building generational wealth.

Why generational wealth?

Generational wealth is simply a way to make it so your kids and grandkids don’t have to struggle as much to get traction in their careers. That gives them time to find a career where they feel fulfilled, rather than having to settle for something they hate just so they can pay the bills.

You see how that works? Money buys time, leading to more fulfillment, and ultimately a happier life.

The other thing that people don’t often consider is that generational wealth helps everyone. 

That wealth doesn’t just sit in a vault somewhere, collecting dust. It’s usually put into some form of investment portfolio. Those investments are hard at work, leveraging one person’s accomplishments to help others succeed, while generating passive income for the investor. Some of it may be in things like real estate, while much of it will probably be in the form of stocks, bonds or funds that help other people stay productive and bring ideas and innovation to market. That ultimately helps the entire economy--which includes you and me. 

Once you’ve come to the realization that TRUE abundance is what you want in your life, and you’re willing to actively pursue it, you'll need a guide to help you through the process of changing your mindsets and behaviors in order to get there. 

That's why we're here. We would like to help guide you to a life of TRUE abundance, but you have to make the choice first. Once you've made that decision, then we're here to help. The first step is to sign up to receive these articles directly in your inbox. Easy, peasy, right?

And, yes, true abundance is achievable! It just takes time (and maybe a little guidance.). ;-J

Next article we'll get into abundance and relationships. Talk to you then!