It’s not about what you get when you get there, but what you go through on the way to get there.
If it was just to know what it looked like on top of Mount Everest, Yuichiro Kiura could have looked at photos and movies. But at age 80, he broke the world record, for the third time, as the oldest person to reach the Summit. Not only that, it was his third trek to the summit since he first broke the record at age 70!
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“If you wish strongly, have courage and endurance, then you can get to the summit of your dream” – Yuichiro Miura
There’s no doubt that the Happy-ness of Pursuit was at play with Mr. Miura. After all, he didn’t go up the 2nd and 3rd time because he thought the view at the summit had changed! No, he had a goal, an objective. A goal that gave him happiness to pursue.
Each time he planned a climb, he trained for more than a year. And he says that it was a joy to keep focused on the future climb, knowing that his persistence would pay off. Endurance powered by courage fueled his happiness.
His happiness was more than just the few minutes at the summit peak … it was the happiness that he thrived on during the years of thinking of the trek, the training and the sharing his in-progress goal with others. He had a plan, had courage and added action to make it successful. And that gave him happiness.
The Happy-ness of Your Pursuit The song lyrics below are from – don’t hate – the Miley Cyrus song, “It’s the Climb”. To me those words embody the essence of the outlook of an entrepreneur, a startup mentality.
Actually a not-bad philosophy for life. (Still don’t know where the idea for that Wrecking Ball video came from, but that was later.)
My Take on this Subject? Despite the fact that you don’t think about it, you only have one life to live.
So, what’s the purpose of push-go, buy-stuff, go-to-work-come-home-get-paid-go-back-on-Monday … if you’re working at a job you don’t like? Buying things and ‘saving up’ money and reaching ‘retirement’ without having any fun?
Sounds terrible. Who would sign up for that?
Sadly, most people do.
Working hard isn’t what I am talking about. I’m talking about Love what You Do.
After all, you’ll need to work hard, stay focused, make smart decisions no matter what you decide to do. And when (not if) you stumble, you will need to get up, shake it off and get back at it. That’s truth, no matter what you do in life. At a job, or in your own business.
But that’s good news, because that means your goal is not to avoid working. But your goal is to have a joyful time while working on something you enjoy. Something you care about and are proud to put on your social media profile: “This is Me and this is what I Do. And I love it.”
To me, personally, working has never felt like work. Ok, sometimes it has – during those tough times, sure. News Flash: Tough times don’t last; but tough people do.
And if you are working on something you love, if you are loving what you do, then you will always have the internal reserve to make it through. And, be proud about it. The pursuit of a thing you love is what will make you happy.
The pursuit of something you love and have enthusiasm/passion for, is part of what gives you happiness and joy. And the energy you get from pursuing what you love is the energy that will get your over the rough spots.
Enjoy the Climb/Journey Rather than enduring the stress of striving, put yourself in the position to enjoy the journey. It’s true that you can actually get burnt out, even if you are doing something you love. Or those around you get burnt out just being around you. Burn out, and you can lose your joy.
But you can get your joy back with a slight bit of effort because overall, you’re doing what you love.
You don’t have to give up; just give in a little. You can still do the Startup Hustle, work crazy hours. Man, you are on it, and you are pursuing your dream. Just don’t zone out and not take time to enjoy the ride* – you don’t get those hours or days or weeks back, ever. Sometimes it takes effort to enjoy yourself, I know the feeling. Just “one more thing” to do, one more bug to fix, one more feature to complete or one more social posting to finish.
So how about “giving in” just a little – relax that deadline by a week, do those last two posts tomorrow, spend the day with the family this Saturday, surprise your significant other with the special gift of your time and do something interesting. Call your Mom. I think the new buzzword is “Be Present”. (Be a present.)
Some of You Make Me Feel Sad You are working hard but not enjoying what you do. You can still hustle – go for it. But just make very sure that you LOVE what you are doing.
Question right now, today -> –Are you really happy? Today, as you read this? –Do you really enjoy what you are working on? –Do you love the place where you are working? –Are you really happy with your job? Or is the pull to start your own gig really pulling at you?
Don’t preface your answer with any excuses such as “Well, if I could do anything I wanted” (you can). Or, “If I didn’t have to ____”… Everyone has a different fill-in-the-blank answer. But it’s all the same to me, because the answer is just a thinly-disguised excuse as to why YOU are not PURSUING YOUR HAPPY-NESS.
I know. You aren’t blaming me… but who are you blaming? You have an excuse, so you sound as though you are blaming someone or something.
But ask me? I am blaming you. YOU are in charge of YOU. Stop wasting your time biting your nails wondering if doing what you really want to do is “worth the risk”. If it isn’t, then you don’t know what you want. So figure out what you really want.
Seriously. What IS the worst that could happen if you take the risk and go for your Happy-ness?
I think you might find that you would actually be…. happy!
Don’t be like that other person. The one who is 35, 40, 55 and wonders “what happened?”
You have to work for what you want, that’s true. You can’t just wander around though life, although too people do exactly that.
I saw a quote “Nobody reaches the top of Mount Everest by just wandering around“.
Think about it seriously. Please. You aren’t going to reach your dreams or your happiness by just ‘wandering around’ and hoping for something to happen. Hope is not a strategy. Saying “I hope that….” isn’t the sound of you making a plan. Even if you repeat it every day.
But having hope? Now that’s essential. But only when you have an action plan. A plan without action isn’t an action plan. It’s just a wish.
An action plan + action + hope + work + persistence, together, pursuing your Happy-ness? Now that’s unstoppable.
So, are you truly happy with how you are doing your life?
What type work would make you happy? What do you think about in private that you _really_ want to do in life? What goal? What work or business? And who with?
Pursue that.
That’s what will make you happy.
fb.com/Gregory Giagnocavo www.StrategyAcademy.net t: @StrategyAcad Subscribe to my YouTube channel: StrategyAcademy.net ——————————————————————– * Enjoy the Ride – song by Krewella
It’s the Climb a/k/a The Startup Song a/k/a Pursue Your Happiness
“Ain’t about what’s waitin’ on the other side, It’s the climb. – Miley Cyrus song “It’s the Climb”
There’s always gonna be another mountain I’m always gonna wanna make it move Always gonna be an uphill battle Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose Ain’t about how fast I get there Ain’t about what’s waitin’ on the other side It’s the climb
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