Is it Selfish to Pursue Happiness?

Seeking our own personal happiness may feel, sometimes, as if we are being completely self-absorbed. Is focusing on being happy a selfish act, even self-indulgent?

The Dalai Lama doesn’t think so – he says:

The purpose of our existence is to seek happiness.

Wow. Aristotle said happiness is the meaning and purpose of life. Psychological research shows, in fact, that unhappy people tend to be the most self-focused and are often socially withdrawn, brooding and even antagonistic. Happy people, in contrast, are generally more sociable, flexible, generous, forgiving and creative; they are also able to tolerate life’s daily frustrations more easily. So perhaps being happy isn’t so selfish; it not only improves our own life, but those around us.

On to the next 30 Days!

Help the youngest victims of today's earthquake in Japan

I’ve just completed by second 30-Day experiment – the Giving Project has come to an end, and I am ready to embark on my next experiment: 30 Days of Meditation. This experiment experiment will consist of a disciplined meditation, 15-20 minutes in length, EVERY single day. Before we get to that, though, I’ll recap briefly the last days of the Giving Project.

You can Incorporate Giving into your Everyday Life

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Although sometimes it’s a chore to have to think about what and where to give every single day, for the most part this experiment has demonstrated to me how easy it is to give, in small ways, in our everyday life. To grab a few extra cans of food when you’re grocery shopping to drop in the food pantry box; to add that extra dollar to the animal shelter at the pet store check-out. When we’re not “saving ourselves up” for the big gives or volunteer days, it’s not that difficult to find easy ways to give on a regular basis, that make a big difference when added up. I encourage you to look for the little things you can do, easily, while you go about your daily work and errands. You might be surprised – and I promise that giving will make your day.