There’s a lot of talk these days about happiness and how, in today’s modern society, we can build happier lives. This is with a backdrop of increasing depression and dissatisfaction with life as we remain glued to our phones and subjected to the misery of social media.
Compared to the Middle Ages where you could measure life expectancy on the fingers of both hands, today’s world is a panacea. Most of us in Europe can expect to live into our 90s, and live our lives under the rule of law, with money to spend on essentials and luxuries, live in decent housing and have reasonable health expectations. And yet we continue to seek out this elusive thing called “happiness.”
I’ve been drawn to a fascinating TED talk given by Emily Esfahani Smith – it’s really worth watching and you can find it here:
From her research, Emily asserts that feelings of pure happiness may come and go, whereas a more fulfilling, sustainable path is for life to be meaningful. What she’s saying, I think, is that happiness isn’t just a state of mind, or an object that you can pluck off a shelf, or something where you can get out of bed and say “today I’m going to be happy”. You can (and maybe should) create a life that is meaningful to you, and as a consequence you will be a happier, more fulfilled person.
As you’d expect there is a formula. Emily defines four pillars in building a meaningful life – belonging, purpose, transcendence and storytelling:
Belonging – a strong sense that you a part of a family or a group, or a community. That your contributions to your community are valued and that you work hard to ensure the group thrives. A community isn’t virtual, it’s got to be real; you can’t just like someone on social media and be part of their community, or they part of yours. In fact liking people in that way may well detract from your own meaning.
Purpose – this is more about what you give, not what you receive – using your strengths to serve others. That can happen through work, where we contribute and feel needed, but it also happens in our personal lives where we may look after an ageing parent or our children or others who need a helping hand, or maybe a piece of land or animals. People who give also tend to be the biggest recipients.
Transcendence – this is also about stepping beyond yourself but in a very different way. These are the moments when you’re lifted above the ‘hustle and bustle’ of everyday life, where you feel connected to a higher reality. It can come from seeing art, reading a stimulating book, learning a new language, connecting with your God. You lose sense of time and space as your mind takes you to another place where you consider things in a different way.
Storytelling – this is the story you tell yourself about yourself, creating a narrative that helps you understand how you became you. We are the authors of our own life stories and we can change and edit them as we go along with the events that happen in our lives. People leading more meaningful lives are found to have stories containing redemption, growth and love.
This resonates with me and I've found myself using the 4 pillars whenever I've been challenged. Each of them is equally important, I've found. Sustainable living is about creating something truly meaningful and showing that you can live a happier more fulfilling life way above what pure consumption can offer.
If you apply the meaningful principles to your business life, ask yourself whether you are deriving belonging, purpose, transcendence and storytelling from your work. If not, is it time to rethink?
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