The pursuit of happiness
There seem to be two competing theories on happiness. The first one says that if you take the initiative to follow your passion or talents, you will achieve great success, which will bring you happiness. The other one says that the more intensely you pursue a goal, the less likely you are to achieve it, and that you must learn to let go to achieve true happiness.
The problem is not that one theory is right and the other is wrong—it is the pressure you feel to choose one and reject the other. When you look around these days, happiness seems to be in short supply, while the marketplace of ideas is more diverse than ever. Ideas are not just theories anymore; they are movements. Everything with mass appeal becomes imbued with a kind of politics that pressures people to find their tribe. These movements have leaders, and those leaders have followers, complete with their own mythology, in-group language, and rituals. You feel compelled to stake your claim in one camp and become its ardent defender. I have certainly felt this way myself.
At some point, I have to ask myself: What compelled me to seek out new ideas in the first place? Was it to prove myself right, or to understand the world better? And if I anchor my emotions to something external, am I seeking happiness or affirmation?
The happiness I derive from external affirmation is always ephemeral. When the feeling fades, I feel empty inside. I become vulnerable to the sway of politics. Never in the history of humanity has politics produced lasting happiness. Politics is divisive by design. A divided person can never be happy.
Perhaps, the answer to happiness lies in how it is understood rather than how it is achieved. Happiness should be open to interpretation. It is not a fixed concept. While the pursuit of happiness may be universal, what happiness means is deeply personal. Even within the same day or same hour our conception of happiness can shift. Sometimes, happiness can mean emotional control; other times, it can mean the opposite—a liberating joy in not knowing where life will take you next.
As the year draws to a close, I am taking time to reflect on the meaning of happiness. I wish you a joyful holiday season, and I hope that you find happiness in ways that are meaningful to you.
