Recognize that your abilities naturally change with age, shifting from fluid intelligence (innovation, quick problem-solving) when young to crystallized intelligence (synthesizing ideas, teaching) when older. Give yourself permission to change and adapt your professional focus to leverage these evolving strengths, rather than resisting or regretting the shift.
Invest deeply in love and relationships, as they are the strongest predictor of long-term happiness and well-being. Cultivate ‘real friends’ over ‘deal friends’ and actively foster strong family and partnership bonds, understanding that love is a commitment and a decision to ‘will the good of the other,’ not just a feeling.
Shift your focus from ‘what’ you do (worldly achievements) to ‘why’ you do it, to avoid success addiction and find deeper purpose. Engage in daily discernment practices, such as meditation or prayer, to listen to yourself and clarify the true nature of your desires and life’s ultimate purpose.
Actively manage your desires to increase satisfaction, recognizing that ‘satisfaction is what you have divided by what you want.’ Create a ‘reverse bucket list’ by identifying and emotionally detaching from worldly cravings like fame, power, and possessions, thereby reducing the denominator in your satisfaction equation.
Recognize the illusion of individual separability and cultivate your ‘Aspen Grove’ by understanding that you are interconnected with others, like shoots from a single root system. Actively make the people around you—your spouse, children, friends—healthier through your behavior, as this inherently makes you healthier and happier.
Understand that happiness comprises three core ‘macronutrients’: enjoyment, satisfaction, and purpose. Regularly assess where you might be ‘macronutrient poor’ and consciously practice behaviors that enhance each of these areas to achieve a balanced and abundant state of happiness.
Overcome the fear of professional or personal decline by recognizing it as a form of death fear, especially if you equate your work with your life. Practice ’exposure therapy’ through structured visualization, like a modified Maranasati meditation, to imagine and accept the inevitable stages of decline, which can be incredibly freeing.
Combat boredom and frustration by embarking on a ‘metaphysical journey’ to understand things bigger than yourself. Engage in practices like meditation, studying stoic philosophy, or traditional religions to gain a ‘zoom out view’ beyond your narrow existence, fostering a sense of purpose and meaning.
Reorder your relationship with the world by adopting the formula: ‘use things, love people, and only worship the divine.’ Avoid loving possessions or using people; instead, enjoy things for their utility while reserving love for human beings, including yourself, by willing their good and treating them with care.
To solidify happiness in your own life, become a ‘happiness professor’ by sharing your knowledge and insights with others. This act of teaching and sharing not only helps others but also reinforces your own understanding and practice, leading to greater personal progress and happiness.
Recognize that untreated mental illness, such as clinical depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder, is a significant and chronic barrier to happiness. Prioritize proper mental health treatment for yourself and advocate for better healthcare systems to remediate these circumstances for others.