Looking For Happiness and Balance? Have You Tried Gratitude?

SOMETIMES THE QUESTIONS we ask our Brain Squad are just meant to be lighthearted and fun; a little break from all the “tell us how your business is doing” heaviness. So, imagine my surprise when one of those questions got unexpectedly deep … moving even.

In the June survey, we asked members “Do you or don’t you consider yourself a happy person most of the time? Do you believe it to be an inherent part of your nature or something you consciously work on?” I imagined the responses we’d get would have some humor, some self-deprecation (“Happy? In this economy?!?”), and even an earnest response or two. I was not prepared for the beautiful, raw honesty we received.

We’re running that Do You/Don’t You on page 45 (with more responses online at invisionmag.com/onlineextra) and *spoiler alert* 97% of you consider yourselves inherently happy! But, of course, that doesn’t mean it’s easy and I was not expecting how frank everyone would be about how being happy takes work. How being happy is a choice. And one you must actively make every day.

And almost across the board, those that said they were happy, and shared how they worked to stay happy, all cited being thankful for the good in their lives. They were grateful for their achievements and the blessings their lives had afforded them. It’s almost as if practicing gratitude in and of itself leads to greater instances of happiness!

One of my favorite comments on the happiness question came from Nikki Griffin at Eyestyles in Oakdale, MN: “The less time I spend thinking about being happy or not, the happier I am. Most often if I am unhappy, it’s because I have too much coming at me at once. Which isn’t so much unhappiness as overwhelm and that is a temporary state.” I think that’s a concept that ties in nicely with our Big Story on work-life balance (page 28).

The more you try to be happy or the more you seek work-life balance the more elusive it becomes. The trick may very well be in focusing on the things you love (shout out to Dr. Rhue’s column on page 40) and being grateful for the things you have. The balance follows.

Best wishes for your business,