17 Apr The Happiness Compass – by Lionel Ketchian
From time to time I’ve brought to you the writings of my friend Lionel Ketchian, founder of Happiness Clubs all around the world. His words of wisdom are always worth considering so it is with great pleasure that once again I bring him to you…
Have you ever felt unhappy? Did you feel helpless? Unhappiness makes you feel hopeless with no point to life. When you have been unhappy you felt like you were lost, right? When you are feeling unhappy you need to use happiness to regain your sense of direction. Like a compass, happiness points you in a positive direction.
From now on, when you feel lost and unhappy, use happiness as your compass to give you the right bearing in life. When you are lost in the woods, the most important thing you can do for your survival is to remember your objective in that situation, which is to find your way back. The essential things are travel, shelter and food. In order to travel in the right direction you need to get your bearings. Remaining cool and calm is the most important thing you can do; otherwise you will travel around in circles.
Happiness allows a calmer state of mind to prevail. To find your happiness bearings; use your “Happiness Compass.” Unhappiness can be a negative detour in your life. Use the “Happiness Compass” and allow it to position you on the right road. If your objective in life is to do the best for yourself, than the “Happiness Compass” point to the spot.
During these times of uncertainly, the territory looks unfamiliar to us. Change is not a good reason to allow your mind to be filled with fear. It is said that change is the only condition you can count on. The amount of work in being unhappy is the same as being happy, it’s all up to you.
Circumstances out of our control happen all the time. There is a hard way to deal with change and an easy way. Why make it harder on yourself? Take the happiness route to higher ground. Once you feel better you are in a mentally superior place to realize the choices that are available.
There is a great deal of talk about a happiness set point. One of the key books about this theory is Happiness, What Studies on Twins Show Us About Nature, Nurture, and the Happiness Set Point, by Dr. David Lykken. This book was published in 1999 and was a comprehensive work on the study of happiness for both fraternal and identical twins that were separated at birth.
Here is a quote from Dr. Lukken’s book on page 60. “If your happiness set point is below average, that means that your genetic steersman is guiding you into situations that detract from your well-being and is tempting you to behave in ways that are counterproductive. If you let your genetic steersman have his way, then you will end up where he wants to go. But it is your life and, within wide limits, you can choose your own destinations instead of having them all chosen for you.”
Let’s redefine the Happiness Set Point as the point on our “Happiness Compass” that we decide to follow. This insures that you will always know what the right direction is when you are not happy. Being unhappy can be dangerous to you health and wellbeing, so you need a strategy to get yourself away from unhappiness and toward your objective in life which is really happiness.
Rather than look at the happiness set point as a degree on a thermostat that you can’t go past. Look at the happiness set point as a degree on a “Happiness Compass,” that shows you that way you want to travel. As Roy M. Goodman said: “Remember that happiness is a way of travel – not a destination.” Bring your “Happiness Compass” with you as you travel so you know where to look to find happiness the next time you lose your way.
The next time you find yourself in an unhappy circumstances, pull out your “Happiness Compass” and select your journey to joy. The whole point of the “Happiness Compass” is to use it and allow it to show you the way. In fact if you use it, you will become a joy magnet. You will be traveling in the right direction and your happiness will serve to attract the best toward you. The “Happiness Compass” shows you the way. Happy trails to you!