Find Your Joy

Find your joy.

I often say that to individuals who are at a crossroads, making a challenging decision, or even trying to figure out what to do for the day.

Think to yourself: Are you truly happy at your job? In your relationships? With your physical fitness level, or physical appearance?  Are you truly happy? What is happiness anyway? Or joy for that matter?

For me, joy comes when whatever I am doing at the moment provides complete contentment and peace, perhaps lots of smiles and laughs, but also perhaps that instant where anything else that exists around me is blocked out and I am almost trancelike, or in the flow as Csikszentmihalyi would phrase it.  (Csikszentmihalyi & Rathunde, 1993). Imagine a baseball player at bat. He doesn’t really hear the crowd, or see the lights, he is in the moment, focusing on the feel of the bat and the smell of the dirt at his feet.  He’s eyeing up the pitcher to anticipate the kind of pitch that’s coming.  He is in the moment and the only thing that matters is that baseball coming his way.  Have YOU ever found yourself focusing so intently on a task that you block out everything else that’s around you?  That’s your joy! The feeling of complete satisfaction and productivity in that moment, brings you joy.

What if, your career, your physical activity, your relationships could be the same way?  It can.  Take some time and take an inventory of things, activities, people that bring you joy.  Think back to a moment when you were truly happy, or joyful.  What did that feel like?  What were you doing? Why did you stop?

In exercise, it never has to be tedious.  I love exercise! Anyone who knows me can attest to that.  I do all kinds of exercise, but not running. I do not like it at all!  If you despise running, why do it? I tried running.  I tried it every way possible.  I ended up messing up part of my hamstrings, never enjoyed it, never felt a sense of accomplishment when I ended my run, and I didn’t see any results. So, I don’t run. But, I do mountain-bike, kayak, hike, do aerobics, weightlift, practice yoga, and rock-climb. And guess what? I ENJOY them all!! Yes! I enjoy exercise.  So, it IS possible.

Let’s discuss your career for a moment. Are you TRULY fulfilled? Does what you do for 40 hours a week bring you joy? If not, why not? Is there someone in your life in whom you can confide? If not, have you considered a Life Coach? The bottom line is you should be doing something that brings you joy.  When I’ve recommended certain strategies to individuals who were seeking guidance in a career choice, I reminded them to find their joy.  They did a lot of soul searching but ended up making a key decision which has now positively impacted their life and more importantly, their jobs bring them joy.

Your homework is to find YOUR joy. Think about it and go for it! You really have nothing to lose.

Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Rathunde, K. (1993). The measurement of flow in everyday life: toward a theory of emergent motivation.