It’s tough, I know.
Perhaps it has never been harder to be happy, at least in our lifetimes.
And getting drawn into cynical conversations, or being hijacked by negative social media, can happen to anyone.
But isn’t this activity consuming hollow calories for your mental and emotional wellbeing?
The trick is how to avoid these traps and emotional sugar rushes that ultimately harm us.
Philosopher Immanuel Kant summed up the Rules for Happiness as ”Something to do, someone to love and something to hope for”.
Let us unpack Kant’s rule and explore how we might apply it.
The first step in recalibrating our mental state is to establish a practise of expressing gratitude.
Times are tough no doubt. However, I am reminded of our predecessors who experienced significantly more life-threatening conditions through wars, famines and great depressions. Dodging bullets, hungry and sometimes without shelter. It is a humbling reminder to acknowledge this to ground our perspective.
The practice of expressing gratitude flips the psyche from a negative state (posting cynical social media memes) to a positive state (reflecting on what you are grateful for).
Something to Do
We are so fortunate in business, for there is always something to do.
If things are going well in business, there is the opportunity to leverage that success.
If things are going poorly, there is a need to focus on actions to improve the trading position.
If there is spare capacity because of quieter trading, the opportunity to create content, improve business infrastructure or explore new opportunities presents.
Beyond business, make time to nurture your mental & physical health through exercise and meditation.
With endless online content, we can invest in our professional and personal development.
Practice expressing gratitude for your ability to be independent in life and carve your own path in business
There is always something to do.
Someone to Love
For most of us, we are fortunate to have loved families and dear friends.
Express gratitude for family. Check in on them regularly and tell them you love them.
Spend precious time with your immediate family and be in the moment of their presence. We may never have as much time with our children as today.
If family members are remote; call them, send thoughtful notes or even post welfare gifts.
One day you will not be here, so be here now.
Acknowledge the special friends that you have accumulated throughout your life. Ring them, email them and think of them often and fondly.
Check in.
Be present.
Express gratitude for these unique people in your life.
Something to Hope for
This is the big one.
Keep hope alive in your mind.
Close your eyes and imagine yourself doing the things you want to do.
What do you hope for?
Here’s a few of mine.
Hugging my Mum & Dad.
Seeing my parents and grandchildren meet and interact.
Attending a family dinner, laughing and sharing great food & wine.
Seeing my friends in person and sharing stories.
Going to the footy or the races to experience a live sporting event.
Feeling the power of a live music gig.
Going to the cinema to enjoy a new movie.
Playing tennis on Thursday nights and enjoying drinks afterwards.
Walking around freely and talking to my neighbours in the street.
Seeing my kids play sport again.
Going on our special family holidays.
There is plenty to hope for.
Practise stopping to acknowledge these hopes and dreams.
Express gratitude for having hopes that are alive.
Practice this exercise to happiness.
Acknowledge you have something to do.
Appreciate you have someone to love.
Reflect on what you hope for.
I write blogs just like this one on productivity and human development fortnightly. If you'd like it delivered straight to your inbox head to https://darrenkbourke.com/the-fourth-moon-blog and let me know your email.
Email me at darren@darrenkbourke.com to schedule a meeting (at no cost or obligation) to discuss how I can help you re-platform from crisis this year.