Undoubtedly, Thomas Jefferson had many great achievements and a brilliant mind, but when the two came together, the result was none so recognizable and significant as the Declaration of Independence. His words are the backbone for which this great experiment, the United States of America, was founded; “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Consider the words of our country’s foremost document, and by extension, the foundation for our Constitution; the pursuit of happiness is not a privilege or a luxury – it is a RIGHT. Unfortunately, while we all want to be happy, most of us don’t know how to actually pursue it. Enter National Pursuit of Happiness Week, beginning on November 8th through the 14th, a little-known, weeklong observance that reminds us to be a little more introspective. Obviously, the best way to celebrate this week is to examine what is really important in your life and what your life is for. To find your path to happiness, start by asking yourself these 10 questions:
- What three words would you use to describe your life right now?
- Do you have balance in your life?
- What makes you happy at work? Outside of work?
- Where were you a year ago today?
- What is stopping you from taking control and being happy?
- Are you the best that you can be?
- What did you do today to move a little closer towards your goal/dream?
- Do you believe in what you are doing with your life? Or are you settling for what you are doing?
- What do you appreciate about your life right now?
- What do you have to lose if you just go for what you intuition is telling you?
Did you get the answers you wanted? What can you do to change those answers?
Begin with a plan. Write down where you are right now (your beginning) and where you want to be (your end). Fill in with what you need to do to get from your beginning to your end, by using the answers you wished you gave for the questions above as your guide. Happiness is a choice, and you make the decisions. And whenever you are in doubt, look at the paper you just created. Turns out, a blueprint for happiness exists after all.