Stop Wasting Your Time Trying to Be Happy

FEBRUARY 17, 2017

Throw out your assumptions about what success looks like and start instead by asking yourself the hard questions. Who are you? What challenges have you overcome? What special talents do you have?

It’s nearly impossible to craft a universal definition of “happiness” because it varies so significantly from person to person. The urge to seek it, however, is inherently etched into our DNA.

So how should this “pursuit of happiness” influence your journey, both as an individual and an entrepreneur? Should it inspire you to work your way to the top, making whatever sacrifices are necessary to achieve your fortune? Or does it mean you should slow down and savor every moment? Or perhaps quit your job today and start building a company? These are the questions of our age for any talented and thoughtful person. Except that they present a false choice. A choice almost certain to lead you on a fool’s errand that will waste much of your life, talents, and treasure.

In short, what we really long for is not happiness, but fulfillment as we pursue our true calling, begin our entrepreneurial journey, and live a life of meaning.

Seeing Yourself Clearly

The first step toward fulfillment is embarking on a rigorous process to see yourself for who you are—your gifts, your shortcomings, and your dreams and desires. You need to understand yourself in a way that makes room for a new kind of happiness—one that grows stronger with every dragon and demon you face.

Throw out your assumptions about what success looks like and start instead by asking yourself the hard questions. Who are you? What challenges have you overcome? What special talents do you have? How can you invest in those talents to develop a new level of mastery? Who’s a worthy travel companion? Who can you talk with that’s further along in their journey? Above all else, what purpose is worthy of your life’s work?