Finding Joy in the Journey
A fascinating question arises, the type of question that is so relatable to everyone reading this article. We always ask this question ourselves but very few people have an answer to it how can I find happiness in life and finding joy in the journey is not a good approach to happiness.
Many people have everything in life, whether they have gone to a great college, have a lovely family, or have a wonderful job that pays very well, but they are still unhappy.
They feel something really important is missing in their life. They feel they are going to work but they are not genuinely happy with it and they don't even know how to feel happy.
Let me share a few things that I have come to know about happiness and how one can get to it.
. First and perhaps the most important thing. If you constantly keep searching for happiness, if you feel that your life is not happy, if you feel that you cannot find happiness in your life then it is quite possible that you will never be happy in your life.
Happiness is a point where you don't need or want anything from life because what you implicitly do is tell yourself once you have that thing in your life, you will achieve happiness.
If I had money, I would be the happiest or if I had fame, I would be the happiest or if I got a promotion, I would be the happiest or if I progressed in life, I would be the happiest or if I bought that phone, I will be happy.
We keep convincing ourselves that once we have fulfilled our desires, we will be the happiest.
But the truth is life doesn't work like that. Life is a trap. It loves addicting us to wants these desires and the minute we get addicted to a desire, to a goal, to an expectation, we are essentially signing a contract to be unhappy till we get it.
Once my desire is fulfilled, I will be the happiest but once you get hold of that desire, there will be another desire and a new chase. And again a new contract that you will not feel happy till you fulfill your new desire.
It is very important to understand this. If you can understand this cycle, you will understand a lot about this happiness and this life as well then you will be able to learn a good lesson but how to be happy is the main question.
Well, I feel that a few things will really help:
Surroundings
First, you have to surround yourself with things that give you joy and meaning. Be around the things that genuinely provide you happiness. The things that bring meaning or a purpose to your life.
Eliminate all the things that make you sad, it could be news, television, newspapers, or toxic people who drain your energy instead of sharing that energy, and all the relationships that you keep for the sake of keeping are not necessary.
You will have to remove those people and those things because until and unless you do that, you cannot surround yourself with an environment where you are genuinely happy and where you will find a purpose.
Spending time with yourself
Every day spend time with yourself without any phone, without books, without any pen and paper, just yourself and your ideas.
Some people call it meditation and some give it other different names. It has different names but it is not important.
What's important is that every single day you spend time with yourself.
It is said that "The most difficult person to live your life with is your own mind"
Our mind is our biggest enemy, our biggest friend, our biggest strength, our biggest weakness. If we understand our mind then we can understand anything in life. That is why the more time you spend with your mind, with yourself the closer you get to understanding your brain.
Not because so that we can control our thoughts, the intention is not to say don't feel angry, don't feel sad, don't feel jealous, don't feel disappointed. No, we are humans we feel all that.
The objective is to realize what is it that we are feeling or to be aware of what is it that we are feeling.
Think long term
Happiness is not short-term. Anything that you do at that particular point is not called happiness. That's just called satisfaction. There is an urge that can cater to yourself then but at a broader long-term level that doesn't benefit you.
You feel like eating chocolate, you eat chocolate right away and you feel happiness or feel good but if you eat chocolate daily, you will feel good at that point but your life will face a lot of consequences. And you know it.
So ask yourself second, third, fourth, fifth order consequences. What does that mean?
Ask yourself the thing which I am going to do right now what will be the first consequences and what will happen after that? Then after that? Then after after that? Then after after after that?
Ask yourself five times where will you reach them after doing that thing? And this applies to all the decisions of life and then you figure that you are signing up for something that will not give you happiness, meaning, and, purpose.
But that investigation is something that most of us don't do. We just stop at the first order that with this person or this thing or that this idea will give instant happiness.
We think very shortly term but if we keep a long-term view and ask ourselves second, third, and fourth-order consequences then we will get to know that the things we are going to do where will take us in life.
Conclusion
If you want happiness genuinely in your life then don't try to find that happiness. Try to feel it naturally in your life. Don't say that you are happy or you are sad instead say, what you are is who you are, and when you reach that milestone or when you achieve that milestone that's when you will realize that achievement that feeling of nothingness is that feeling of happiness.
Last but not least adopt growth habits stay away from depression, anxiety, and stress, and know the importance of mental health.
FAQ
Q) How to get joy in the journey?
By surrounding yourself with those things that give you happiness and by spending some time with yourself.
Q) What does finding joy in the journey mean?
Finding joy in the journey means understanding that the feeling of nothingness is the feeling of happiness.
Q) How to find joy in life?
If you want happiness genuinely in your life then don't try to find it instead try to feel it naturally in your life.