happiness

Meaningful work, happy life

1/3rd of your life will be spent at work. That’s 90,000 hours—or 1/2 of your walking hours.

Are you enjoying it?

I hope you are (or you will).

When you look back on your life now and in the future, what would make good life? An amazing life?

Friends, family, and loved ones usually come out on top. Meaningful work usually tops the list as well. When you have purpose (or what the Japanese call “ikigai”), studies show that life satisfaction increases, your resilience levels increase, and you actually live longer and happier.

So…what does meaningful work mean to you? Are you doing any of it now? How can you do more of it?

Being happy during COVID?

How can it be true that people are happy during COVID?

Well, that is not true per se but a subset of a statistically insignificant population size of 3 people from my Mastermind group.

"On a scale from 1-10, how happy are you right now?"

Patricia, laughing hysterically and unabashedly responded, "Is it strange that I've been extremely positive during this time?!"

That is quite the positivity you possess there for having been locked down with a 2-year old and a husband who contracted COVID recently. But bravo, please pass over some of that whatever-you-are-taking.

While COVID has unsurprisingly shut down worldly and daily possibilities, what it has not shut down is our ability to control what we can control. Yes, the world has come crashing down (or in) but according to who? Well—the psyche of our own minds. OK, I get it...it's 105% OK to complain. But what I don't believe is OK is for those of us to continuously and comfortably complain in the comfort of our reclining, $150-company-paid-for leather chairs, warmly sipping our hot chocolates in our automatic climate-controlled rooms overlooking the falling winter snow upon the glistening canals of the Amsterdam, "Omg, I am so tired of Zoom. This really, really sucks. Sad face."

Damn, do you know that 99% of the population has never even heard of "automatic climate-controlled?" In fact, that's 22nd-century alien speak as told in fairytales over the original "automatic climate-controlled" room—sticks, stones, and a real fire. And hot chocolate is really for rich people.

It's a good reminder to count our blessings. Each and every single day. Every moment. That we can be pompous enough to complain about Zoom fatigue. It's a good reminder to stop and reflect, be grateful, and reframe the situation, "OK...Zoom screens suck. What you gon’ do about it?"