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We are creatures of habit. Whether those habits serve us or hinder us is the difference between being happy or being stuck in a life where we merely exist.
Choosing the right habits is the ultimate lifehack to help you be happier. And those habits may be different for each of us.
Our happiness is a byproduct of our thoughts but focusing on only having positive thoughts is unrealistic. Instead, focus on not dwelling on the negative ones.
We judge because we want to know the answer before we understand the challenge. The first step in moving past judgement is releasing the need for an answer.
Instead of judging, form an opinion. Judgements are assumptions that usually do not change. An opinion, however, is an isolated view of the world that can change with the discovery of new information.
We do plenty of activities that do not contribute to the fullness of our life, some of them are mandatory but others are optional. Understanding how you spend your time makes it simpler to choose to do things that lend value to it, and that even makes the mandatory tasks easier to do.
RELATED IDEAS
- A highly esteemed political intellectual in the ancient world;
- She was a priestess at Delphi who provided many opportunities for in-depth philosophical conversations; and
- She was included in Plutarch's works in the prefaces of On the Bravery of Women and On Isis and Osiris where they have invigorating conversations on topics such as death, virtue, and religious history.
- Clea (~100 CE) was a priestess at Delphi — a highly esteemed political and intellectual role in the ancient world. The religious practitioners received frequent requests from world leaders for divine advice about political matters. Clea was part of this political-religious system, but she believed in the primary importance of philosophy.
- She had many in-depth philosophical conversations with Plutarch, the most famous intellectual of his time. He credits her with inspiring his own work.
Philosophy, for the deep thinkers, was a daily discipline that put an end to the anxiety and suffering.
Great men like Socrates, the many Stoics, Epicureans and many others knew about the fundamental flaw in our judgement that is the reason for our misery: Valuing superficial things like money, prestige and material comforts.