How To Start Pursuing Your Happiness Today

Make Time For Happiness - Series: Part 4

What makes you happy?

Seems like an easy question, but when was the last time you honestly took the time to sit down by yourself and answer this question? If your answer is, “I guess I haven’t asked myself that question in a long time or ever,” then you are at the place I was about 3 months ago. Fortunately my time off was very productive emotionally, spiritually, and professionally and it only took me 2 weeks to discover the reasons why I was stopped at a green light.

If you have struggled at times with lack of motivation and direction (like me) keep reading because I have discovered a solution that works for me and I am convinced that it will help you start pursuing your happiness today.

Realization

If you are a regular reader here at Passionate America you might have noticed my posting frequency has dropped in the last month. This has happened to me before, I get to a point in my life where I am angry and just have no desire to write a post. I read everything with a hyper link and find some gems that get the old noddle working, however when it comes time to let the fingers do the walking my keyboard almost seems to be like a magnet pushing my fingers away. In short my hands come off the keyboard, back to the mouse, and the search for my next inspiration begins. The intention to write is there, however the action is almost painful or non-existent. Luckily I have been here before and my awareness of this personal emotional roller coaster has increased to the point where the ride gets shorter and shorter each time.

Blogger burnout is often the label that most bloggers put on themselves when their motivation and inspiration seems to have taken a vacation. Burnout is a convenient diagnoses but not an accurate diagnoses. Many bloggers simply shut down their blogs and never return. Other bloggers suffering from what they believe is burnout return to the world of blogging only to discover that the reason they stopped blogging is still present and they are not sure what that reason is. Somehow these hit and miss bloggers find enough inspiration and motivation to continue blogging, but more often than not they have not come to the realization of why they have not become an A-list blogger.

Dr. Phil likes to say, “You can’t change what you don’t acknowledge” which explains why many people plod along through an unfulfilled existence. Some have not had the realization of why nothing they do seems to fill them with passion, while others fail to acknowledge that they have a problem or that happiness is even an achievable goal. If you have read this far then you are most likely open to the idea that it is possible to discover the path to happiness. This puts you at an extreme advantage over the people that started reading this post only to give up in the first few paragraphs. You are at least able to acknowledge that you would like to change and this realization is necessary to move on to the next step in your pursuit of happiness.

Time to get real

I got a call from the manager of a hotel I used to work at as a front desk clerk. I thought is was strange that the hotel would be calling me since they fired me for being, “too combative.” The manager told me that the hotel had new owners and that they needed a weekend front desk clerk and asked if I wanted the job. For those that do not know me I am a stay-at-home-father of two boys and I have not had a taxes removed from your paycheck before you even get to cash the check job since I was fired from the hotel more than a year ago. Blogging was not really paying the bills so I told the manager I would talk it over with my wife and get back to her in a few days. After speaking with my wife I called the hotel back and told them I would take the job.

The weekend was fast approaching and I was feeling pretty good (or so I thought) about getting back to work. Most of us have had it beaten into our skulls that we had to have a job and that nagging I need to have a job voice—that sounded strangely like someone else’s voice—was on instant replay in the back of my mind. I felt as if I where being torn apart, the voice kept explaining to me why I had to take this job, but some part of me was screaming NOOOOOO.

The moment had come, I had to get into my car and drive to the hotel so I would be on time for my first day back to work. And then it happened, a clarity that had been missing from my life for a long time suddenly and without warning helped me realize what I should have done when the phone rang. I walked into the house called the hotel and told them that I would not be there and that I had decided I did not want to work at the hotel.

That get real moment started me back on my journey toward my pursuit of happiness. You see I did not like working at the hotel. I realized the only reason I had worked there in the first place was because it was what other people had told me I should do.

Do you remember when you were younger and you where fill with starry eyed excitement?

What were you were going to be when you grew up?

• a veterinarian
• an astronaut
• the president of the United States
• insert your dream career here

That little child that you used to be, that fill to the brim passionate little kid that wanted to change the world, invent the next must have widget, and be the first person to set foot on another planet, that is who we are, that is who we are supposed to be. We have forgotten what it is that made us dream. We have forgotten what it was like to hear the sound of the ice cream truck coming up the street and running out of the house with the biggest smile on our faces to get that ice cream sandwich. We have forgotten how to be happy and most of all we have forgotten that it is even possible.

Have you forgotten how to be happy?

Its not to late to start pursuing your happiness. In fact you can start today! Here are a few ways how to start pursuing your happiness today:

• add happiness to your to-do list
• decrease happiness interruptions
• give happiness to increase your happiness

In part 5 I am going to show you my solution by making a plan for happiness in only 10 minutes.

Make Time For Happiness - Series:

• Part 1 - Adding Happiness To Your To-Do List
• Part 2 - Taking Your Happiness To The Next Level - Decrease Interruptions
• Part 3 - Don’t Be Stingy! - Give Some Happiness To Increase Your Happiness
• Part 4 - How To Start Pursuing Your Happiness Today

I want to hear from you. Leave a comment and tell me: What did you want to be when you grew up?