One of my favorite all-time books on the subject of purpose and happiness, is Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's "Flow." My greatest take-away is that happiness, like success, cannot be pursued. This simple, yet profound message has impacted my life more than any other experience. "Happiness is not something that happens. It is not the result of good fortune or random chance. It is not something that money can buy or power command. It does not depend on outside events, but, rather on how we interpret them. Happiness is a condition that must be prepared for, cultivated, and defended privately by each person. People who learn to control inner experience will be able to determine the quality of their lives."
So as we prepare for Ted's call this morning on the Secret, behind The Secret, I take you into the weekend with an important question to ponder - If happiness and success cannot be pursued, why do the great majority of us aim at it? Enjoy your weekend. Watch the Final Four. And Cheer for the Hoyas to win it all. Good thinking!
2 comments:
Most people do not seem (I will try not to pass judgment on intentions or inner thoughts) to want the stewardship or responsibility in the equation of the way I feel depends on me. If we can somehow buy, manipulate, or even create hapiness then if the results are not as we intended, the blame resides outside of us - not being happy is not my fault! That, unfortunately, is the way most must find sleep at night. It has to be something outside of me that drives this good or bad thing to happen. My question now and has always been - how does a victim of abuse function and thrive, even counseling and supporting other non-functioning and waning victims of abuse. We have choice and control most of all, when we realize the choice to be happy or in hell resides within ourselves.
I think in an interview with Wired magazine, Csíkszentmihályi described flow as being completely involved in an activity for its own sake.
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