12 Mar Happiness and life should never be about just one thing
I've always believed that life should be about more than just one thing. I'm not necessarily suggesting something like the concept of "balance", because balance to me sounds near impossible and potentially boring! But I am suggesting that, as the old saying goes, we need be careful we don't put all our eggs in one basket.
I've seen people make this mistake over and over again – the only thing that matters is money, or work, or losing weight, or looking good, or a girlfriend/boyfriend etcetra etcetera.
Things might all be fine and rosy while that person or thing is around and going well but what if, or what about when (which, depending on what we're talking about can be pretty likely) goes away or in some way or other falls over?
I'll tell you what happens…everything tumbles down and depression and emptiness ensues : (
This is why The Happiness Diet focues on much more than just weight loss (see HERE). This is why I worry about professionals who devote their lives to work at the expense of relationships and fun. This is why I worry about people who love their partners but who have no other friends or no other social and recreational outlets.
Now let me make one thing clear; I've NOTHING against intensely loving relationships or dedicated professionals and workers or, well, anyone who's committed to what they're doing. But if we rely completely and totally on one thing then we're making a massive gamble that that one thing will always be there and pay off because if it's not, as I've seen in someone I recently worked with, all is lost when one thing is lost.
On the other hand, if we create a life with variety and multiple sources of satisfaction and work and fun and play and people then, we might still lose one of these or have difficulties on one domain or other but then we also have other things to turn to and other sources of happiness and joy.
If we have a bad day at work we should be able to turn, for happiness, to our partner or our children or a friend; if we have troubles with our partners we should be able to seek positivity via a friend or achievement at work; if we are sick and our health suffers we should have other sources of pleasure.
So make sure your happiness and life strategy is multi-pronged; make sure it's not too dependent on any one thing. And if you feel it is, seek help because there are a range of options available to those who want to build a happier and healthier life (see below).
PS: What options? Try…
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Attending one of my upcoming workshops in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and Newcastle (with more locations and dates to come) – HERE
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One of our free resources – HERE
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A self-help option such as The Happiness Handbook or another of my books – HERE
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Getting involved in our Facebook (HERE) and/or Twitter communities (HERE)