Last week in ethics class we had a discussion that I can't stop thinking about. We started talking about happiness; what real happiness is and its causes. The things we were talking about weren't novel ideas or concepts I haven't heard before, but for some reason I was really impacted by it.
What I learned is this. Tons of research and experiments have proven the following:
50% of our happiness is our biological set point.
{meaning half of our happiness is simply our inherited predispositions; just the way we are}
Another 40% is comprised of intentional activity.
{things we can actively do to increase our happiness}
behavioral activities to increase happiness: serve others, be kind, exercise
cognitive activities to increase happiness: be grateful, be optimistic, self-reflect & count your blessings
volitional activities to increase happiness: religion, marriage & family, work
And the last 10%, just 10%, of our happiness is due to our circumstances.
{including where we live, age, gender, job, income, looks, etc.}
& what i kept wondering during the lecture, and keep thinking about now, is how are so many people missing the boat? a lot of what we talked about is what i hear every sunday in church, and even i still sometimes think things like "as soon as i can travel the world with eddie i'll be set and my happiness will increase exponentially." but it's not true! money does not equal happiness. actually, up to a certain point, precisely $75,000/year, more money can bring more happiness because it is providing the essentials. but after that point money is not a source of happiness. in fact, mo money mo problems.
i am not writing this because i am unhappy. in fact, at this point in my life i am really happy, probably because i have a lot more meaningful relationships than i do possessions. i am writing this to apply what i have learned, and to record something that really impacted me so i can use it as a reminder of what is really important. to remind myself if i am feeling down in the future to go serve. or to exercise or to count my blessings.
as a side note, as part of this unit we had to write a paper about what makes us happy, and i spent 4 of my 5 pages writing about eddie. and i hope in 50 years nothing changes!
