What Matters More- Happiness Or Well Being?
My Mantra for wellbeing happiness
If you are not happy there can be no well-being.
When happiness means experiencing pleasure and enjoyment for the short term then it is Hedonic happiness.
When it is achieved through an experience with meaning and purpose that stays long term it is called Eudaimonic happiness.
Hedonic + Eudaiomonic = Wellbeing Happiness Short Term + Long Term = Wellbeing Happiness
Now you see that short term happiness is momentary.
It is only when there is some pleasure and it is for the moment. For example, I eat food which I enjoy. I like to watch a cricket match and when India wins I am happy and I cheer.
This type of happiness is forgotten soon.
If I continue to achieve happiness in my state of mind consistently then it is well being. So happiness becomes the main element for wellbeing.
To quote the psychologist Martin Seligman
“Well-being cannot exist just in your own head. Well-being is a combination of feeling good as well as actually having meaning, good relationships, and accomplishment”.
My mantra is to have sustained long term happiness there are two important things to consider.
- The Japanese form of Happiness called IKIGAI
- Martin Seligman’s model of PERMA
The combination of these two techniques will give you sustained happiness leading to well-being happiness.
In Japan, there is an island called Okinawa where people live a long and healthy life. They live longer because they are happy. To be happy their formula is:
Find the purpose of your life
When you find the purpose of what you are doing you will become passionate and will do the work with a focus and great interest.
In addition Japanese advocate
- Eating light food with your stomach only 80% full.
- Engagement with community and spirit of working together in synergy
- Light exercises every day.
- Do some physical work.
- Keep your mental ability alive
- Never retire as long as you live.
We cannot follow the formula of the Japanese completely but even if we believe in it and follow it 60% we will do a great job in achieving happiness in our lives leading to long-term well-being in our lives.
Another formula that is simple but connects well is to enjoy yourself and let your spirits fly to find enjoyment. Relax and you will be able to take your work to the level that you wish to and accomplish many things in life.
Martin Seligman’s formula P E R M A
P- Positive thinking
E -Emotional engagement
R- Relationships
M-Meaning
A- Accomplishments.
I feel that these theories are quite similar but packaged a little differently.
Positivity: To think positive, one should keep the mind relaxed and sometimes imagine things and just dream because it is beautiful. Just do not dream big unless you want to. So I say relax your mind and DREAM BEAUTIFUL I often dream that I am Alice in Wonderland. I fantasize about all the beautiful things like golden fountains and beautiful dresses and awesome rooms and I start becoming positive.
Move from the real world and just let go! Deep breathe and enjoy the fresh air!
Engagement: Keep yourself busy always. I used to work in a B School and what I liked most was that I was busy all day and so were the other people working there. The work was interesting and we had wonderful programs cultural shows and parties to have a mixture of formal and informal interaction. From the point of view of employee engagement, it was an excellent place to work. Do not retire — Just keep busy.
Relationships: Maintain your friends, cousins, relatives, and community. Have long term relationships and give them your time. Synergise with them. Do not fight unnecessarily. This interaction through relationships keeps you happy and it is sustained long time happiness.
Meaning: Just like the Japanese IKIGAI, this theory also states that it is important to find the meaning and purpose of your life. Find it and follow your heart!
Accomplishments: Take pride in whatever you achieve. It gives you confidence and motivates you to work hard and achieve more. It leads to confidence-building and ready for better work.
What are the takeaways?
#1. Try to achieve sustained long term happiness that is called Eudaiomonic Happiness.
#2. Everyone should have the objective of being happy and striving towards it because if you are not happy, you cannot achieve Well-being which is true happiness.
#3. Community interactions and relationships are good for a continuing happy frame of mind
#4. Define your purpose in life and follow it with your heart.
To conclude:
Lasting happiness is only through a continued state of happy thoughts. What matters more? Happiness or wellbeing?
I leave you to your thoughts.
I think Happiness is very important because there is no wellbeing without being happy. Be in a continued state of happiness by dreaning beautiful, meeting people, engaging with the community and you will achieve wellbeing,
So friends those who are reading this , engage physically and mentally, find your purpose in life and never retire.
This is my very first story on the new publication by Dr. Mehmet Yildiz. It is called Passive Income for writers. He has kindly added me as an Editor and writer and I would like to invite writers to this new platform to contribute their stories. The invitation link is given below.
I did a book review on the book IKIGAI which I am very fond of reading and recommending. I am just placing it below. You may like to read the review and be inspired to read the book