Being happy by choice is such an intelligent decision to make and a powerful tool to purposeful living!
When you are happy, there are arguably very few things that can beat your abilities to function optimally-at anything. I can argue about how awesome you can really claim to be whenever you try to function from a place of sadness or despair.
I had this particular friend (from way back undergraduate days) who had so much in his head to handle, even as a student at that time. When we got to our second year in school, his house was literally on fire. To begin with, there was a great degree of domestic violence back home, which ultimately crumbled his parents’ marriage. He tried all he could to mediate, but nothing worked; he and his siblings looked on as the family tore apart. Next on the cards was that the funds (what you call monthly stipends/upkeep) for a student dried up, at some point completely. Getting along was as hard as hell for this young man and he almost dropped out when it got really bad!
Well, before you conclude that this person was just a student and that there are bigger problems than his, I think it is rather not so cool to try to weigh problems in the first place. Frequently, everyone is possibly going through one thing or the other (whether they mention it to your or not)’. I can easily tell you that this lad’s spirit was literally crushed. I wandered how he managed to keep his cool and still pull through. Trust me, if he didn’t share, you wouldn’t even guess that he was fighting some gruesome battles. Rather than wear his problems on his face, he chose to wear the best smiles and radiance, nonetheless. While the problems didn’t exactly go away, he had this precious understanding that he alone was responsible for his own happiness. These things massively paid off for him as he currently doesn’t even remember or look like those times.
Just before I delve into the matters of personal life and living, l would briefly talk about the social adversities and the prevailing negatives in the socio-economic climates across certain societies with peculiarities. I doubt that there are very plenty things to be happy about as an average Nigerian citizen, living in Nigeria for example. Then there are other issues that hinge around finances, job/career, family, emotional battles, a few disappointments here and there. In fact, the numbers of possible things that can keep you sad are beyond enormous!
It is worthy of note that the things that make us sad are oftentimes temporal and exogenous to us. For the ones we can control, it’s important to fix them and learn where necessary. While I particularly believe that there are no limits to what and who anybody can become, I am also aware of the fact that shocks and unprecedented happenings can show up. It is however crucial to have a perfect response mechanism set in place, and set to trigger whenever any duress inclined shock springs up. This is the greatest height of emotional intelligence in my opinion!
Quit the frenzy on social media! No one (except for a few anomalies) comes online to share bitter/sour experiences or occasions of sadness. Most times, a person’s psychology prefers to be portrayed as ‘close to perfect’, nothing less! Some persons get to the extent of sharing false lifestyles and experiences of “the good life”, capable of setting your emotions on fire. Mirroring your life and wellbeing off some social media standards and visuals would honestly be a very wrong thing to do to yourself. The simple words “I choose to be happy” can go farther than you think in setting you up for a really beautiful life and some peace of mind. Please realize that the choice to be happy is your conscious effort to make. Rather than tie being happy to things and/or occurrences, it is more beautiful to make it a lifestyle.
This week; I consciously urge you to tackle your projects and tasks happily, to prepare for that terrific exam happily, to chase your goals with enthusiasm, to relate with people happily and cheerfully, to/deal with your spouse happily, to respond to everything unpleasant happily. It would be a really smart idea to take the keys to your life, space and sanity from things, people, and occurrences; and that you decide to, choose to be happy!
