Goals and Happiness
What makes you happier than anything else you do? Where does real contentment come from?
If you understand and apply the following definition of happiness, you also open the door to unlimited success for yourself, your family and your group.
“Happiness could be defined as the emotion of progress toward desirable goals. There is an instant of contemplation of the last goal in which one is content. But contentment becomes boredom immediately that new goals do not come to view. There is no more unhappy thing than a man who has accomplished all his ends in life.” — L. Ron Hubbard
Examine how three facts, from this definition of happiness, make happiness come and go in your life.
1. “There is an instant of contemplation of the last goal in which one is content.”
Think of goals you have reached in the past. Remember how you felt on your wedding day or when you graduated from school or a training course? In each case, you achieved a goal!
Remember those times when you were content with life? Maybe when you started a business or landed a great job? When you paid off your debts?
At every point in your life when you felt content or happy, you can probably find you were either making progress toward a goal or had reached a goal
2. “But contentment becomes boredom immediately that new goals do not come to view.”
Without a new goal, you get bored. Boredom leads to stress and misery. For example, planning a vacation is exciting. But toward the end of a vacation many people are bored to tears as they no longer have a goal.
Arguments during honeymoons are common if the newlyweds do not set goals for their marriage.
Planning your retirement and the first day of retirement is a thrill. But the joy of freedom quickly turns to boredom and early death if you do not work on new goals.
“There is no more unhappy thing than a man who has accomplished all his ends in life.”
Think of a time you were very bored. Had you completed a major goal without starting a new one? Look at other times you were bored. Examine your goals, or lack of goals, at those times.
3. “Happiness could be defined as the emotion of progress toward desirable goals.”
We can use this definition to understand unhappiness as well. When were you last unhappy?
In each case, you probably 1) had no goal, 2) were trying to reach an undesirable goal, or 3) you were making no progress toward a goal.
Using the definition of happiness makes happiness easy to achieve. Simply chose desirable goals and make progress toward them!
The following exercises will help you put this definition of happiness to use.
Five Goal-setting Recommendations
Use these steps as a guide to make 2003 your happiest, most productive year ever!
1. List goals you have not yet reached.
Small goals, large goals, old goals, failed goals and current goals. Make a very complete list.
2. Circle those goals that interest you the most.
Drop out the goals that do not excite you as you can’t reach a goal unless it interests you.
However, if an uninteresting goal is vital for you to reach, find ways to get excited about that goal. Examine the goal’s benefits. For example, maybe the goal to “Pay off all debts” does not thrill you until you examine the benefits: Save $5319 in interest this year, financial freedom, less anxiety.
If you cannot find any benefits of the goal, eliminate it.
3. Add new, desirable goals.
Push the envelope of your self limitations and set goals you really, really want. What are your greatest desires?
If you had unlimited time, money and support, what would your life be like? What would you do? What would you have?
If you knew you could accomplish ANYTHING, what would your goals be?
Add these goals to the list.
4. Line up your goals in a logical sequence.
The better your goals align with each other, the more likely you will reach them. For instance, if you have a goal to travel the world for six months this year and another goal to make more money this year than ever before, you might have problems.
However, if you line up your goals, your odds of success are better because your focus is constant. Example of aligned goals: “Finish my training program so I can double my productivity and income.” “Help my husband lower our monthly debts so we can spend more time with the kids.” “Delegate all of my sales activities to the sales manager so I can open a new office.”
5. To complete the procedure and become happier, you now need to start making progress toward your goals.
Big steps or baby steps, any progress is progress.
Plan out next week. Plan out the month of January. Plan your best year ever.
Make a new habit of reviewing your goals each day to keep your attention and efforts aligned with your goals. At the start of each day, ask yourself: What can I do today to make progress toward my goals?
The more progress you make toward your most desired goals, the happier and more successful your new year will be!
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