We're Born Enough - Do We Need Anything To Be Happy?

Think about this for a moment…

When you are born, are you missing anything?

Let’s assume you are born healthy and have parents that take care of you...

You enter this world already having and being enough...

Then you grow up and society comes along and tells you what to do and what to get.

It changes our view on "having enough", and more importantly on "feeling enough". Although we were once all born with everything we needed in life, we might not feel like it anymore.

During my first year of university, I spent a lot of time in lectures and libraries…

Why did I do that? To get good grades, to get a degree, to get a well-paid job, and ultimately to feel enough and find true happiness...

NOTE: For the sake of reading I talk about happiness or being happy in this post. However, what I mean by that is not being smiley and shiny the whole time. I think of it as a more constant state in which we feel enough, satisfied and at peace with ourselves.

In the end we all want to be happy in our lives. We might think if we get this specific thing or reach that certain situation in life, we will be happy.

Like I said, for me it was to get that college degree, for you it might be something else... Maybe a certain job or having your own house or a loving partner. Whatever it is, we are tempted to believe that if we get these things, we will be happy.

It’s the biggest lie of life: To get something and then be happy.

It is only an illusion. It gives us a reason to chase something. Once we reach it, for a fleeting moment we might feel happy, yes. However, after a short period of time we will feel exactly like before. We finally have a college degree. Now what? We got that long-awaited job. Now what? We reached the top of Mount Everest. Now what?

It can be quite lonely up there…

Don’t get me wrong. Having goals and striving for bigger things in life is great and has brought us as mankind far beyond of what we could ever dream of.

But it is so important (for our own sake) to enjoy the journey that gets us there, because in the end it will always be a journey to something.

You probably heard of the saying “Life’s a journey, not a destination.” As cheesy as it might sound, it's true. It is what life is all about, the journey and not the end state – the way to get there and not the actual thing we get.

If we are constantly chasing something new in order to get happiness, we will never experience true joy and satisfaction as a constant enduring feeling.

Of course, I’m not happy all the time. I think no one really is (and shouldn’t be). It’s the ups and downs of life that make our lives worth-living.

However, as I mentioned earlier what I mean by true happiness in this context is being satisfied and at peace with ourselves on a deeper level.

And this starts with gratitude.

Being grateful for what we already have – right now – is the key to experiencing more joy in life.

There are so many things we can be grateful for that we already have today. May it be our health, our loved ones, peace and prosperity, fulfillment of basic needs like food and shelter etc...

And these things are most certainly a lot more important than most of the goals we pursue in our lives.

It starts with being grateful for all these things, and then we can aim for new goals, because then we start from a point of abundance instead of lack or craving.

Like I said, back in university I was the whole time really focused on getting something. I basically lived in the future.

This made me feel quite stressed as well. Some nights I couldn’t fall asleep because I was too worried about the upcoming exams. No wonder. Constantly planning and worrying about the future makes us anxious, we try to control something that is by definition unknown.

I guess deep down I knew already back then that this path wouldn’t give me true happiness, but on a more superficial level I still believed it. And besides… What was the alternative? Quitting everything? And then? I had no idea.

To be honest, I also didn’t have the courage to try something else. However, this is what I’m doing now by writing this. I try new things. I have no idea where all this will lead me.

All I know is that I give it a try and that I’m grateful for having this opportunity.

Besides, I think that it is only by trying new things that we can find what really fulfills us in life.

However, I don’t think there is one ultimate purpose that makes us fulfilled and happy until the end of our days. This may be true for some people, but at least not for me.

I think the things that make us fulfilled – just like life itself – change as we get older (and hopefully a bit wiser)... Right now, we might be fulfilled by doing this thing. In five years, we might enjoy something completely different.

So, if we find something that fulfills us today, let's go for it – and let's make sure that we enjoy the chase.

Because it will always be one.

Thanks for reading and have an amazing day!

Much love,

Markus.

León, Nicaragua, 12/06/2022

Where I take my inspiration...

If you enjoyed this post, the book Inner Engineering might be an interesting read for you! It is written by the Indian yogi and spiritual thinker Sadhguru who inspired me a lot in my life (and on the thoughts for this article). You can also listen to it as an audio book for free if you sign-up as a new customer at audible.

(These are affiliate links which means: If you make a purchase through one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.)

Other articles...

As I already said if we want to be"happy" we need to feel grateful first. In this article I explain 5 easy ways to be more grateful in our everyday lives.

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