Aiming your life towards joy makes all aspects of your life fall into place. Too often we think we have to complete unenjoyable tasks when, in truth, those efforts may not be a good or necessary match for you or your joy. I thought of this today when I took an onerous task off my list and replaced that task with a more enjoyable activity that fulfills the same need.
If we live with the mantra that life is hard work, we may miss the joy possible related to what we do and why we do it. Instead, I propose that you aim your life in the direction of joy--deep, meaningful joy.
As I think about joy, I realize that there's a difference between joy and pleasure. Pleasure brings short term happiness and good feelings while joy has a deeper, longer, better effect. Joy typically includes activity that not only brings pleasure to you, but makes a positive difference for others too. Joy is the result of meaningful, life enriching endeavor.
How can you aim your life toward greater joy?
Examine your routine
Examine your routine with regard to what brings you joy and what doesn't. See if you can replace the joyless activity with more joyful options. If a particular activity fills you with dread, imagine what you may do instead that brings about a similar result.
Make a list of the activities you engage in that bring you the greatest joy
Yesterday I pushed myself to engage in an activity that typically brings me great joy, and unsurprisingly, once I began the task, I was filled with joy. That activity is a must-do for my life since it's the kind of activity that brings me and others great joy. That's a keeper. I also quit an activity that continually fills me with dread. Simply quitting that activity released me from that worrisome task giving me good time for more meaningful endeavor.
Choose work that brings you joy
As an educator, I was almost always completely devoted to my career. I truly enjoyed finding ways to best teach and support young children. Looking back, I wish I had taken the aspects of the profession that brought me the greatest joy and focused on those areas with greater depth and camaraderie. In some ways, as a generalist teacher, I stretched myself too thin which was stressful at times. Had I deepened my commitment and focus on the areas that brought me the greatest joy, I think I would have been more satisfied at the end of my career. When you stretch yourself too thin, you often are not able to achieve the depth or expertise you desire. That said, I'm glad I chose a career path that brought me meaning and joy--that was positive overall.
Choose people that bring you joy
Some people bring a lot of joy to your life. And in cases where a loved one may challenge you, it's important to identify the joy possible in the relationship and commit to creating that joy more often. For example, I spent an awesome day with a loved one recently--what we did excited and uplifted both of us. Creating more time times of mutual joy is one way to strengthen the good relationships you have.
When joy eludes you
When you're joyless or unhappy, think about why that's true. What's missing and/or what's upsetting the potential joy? To consider what's missing, there are mental games you can play to identify the missing pieces. For example, one question you may ask yourself is this: If I could have or do anything at this moment, what would I do or have? This simple question helps to pinpoint what you need right away. Another way to identify what you want and need is to write a description of your perfect life, best friend, or the person you want to be. All of these descriptions help to identify the elements that will bring you joy.
To discover the aspects of life that take away your joy, you can ask the question, If I could change one thing in my life, I'd change __________________. This question helps you to identify what is eating at your joy. You may also take a minute to reflect during joyless moments about what's happening right at that moment, and how you make change in order to bring more joy.
Joy is amazing
It is amazing to consider what you can accomplish when you live and work with joy. Joy translates to good energy, positive contribution, and happy living. Identify the joy in your life and the joy you are aiming for, and then as much as possible, live a joyful life. Onward.