The Origin of Happiness(Eun-Kuk Seo)

 1. Happiness is subjective.


Unhappy people do not know the value of positivity, but it does not work out as they want.

Even though happiness is not essentially a 'thought', they keep advising you to change your thoughts.

It is almost impossible to become happy by reading this kind of happiness guidebook.

mobile e-book: 23p


When I write, I often tell you to change your thoughts and think positively.

I think everyone who reads knows what is good and what is not, but I have confirmed that unconditional reframing or changing thoughts is problematic and I am reflecting on it.

I think that even if I instill my personal thoughts in others, those who are not in that situation will think, 'What kind of comforting words are you talking about?'

So now I will try to write in a different direction.

I am happy to write, but others are not, and since each person thinks happiness is different, I think 'happiness' is subjective.

I hope you find your own 'happiness' and create a virtuous cycle in your life.


2. Money is just one of the tools that helps happiness.


This is because money is similar to vitamins.

Vitamin deficiency causes various problems in the body, but consuming more than the appropriate amount is no longer beneficial.

Mobile e-book: 134p


For Koreans or most people living in capitalism, I believe that money is a measure of happiness.

However, there are cases where rich people, celebrities, athletes, etc. commit suicide even though they have a lot of money.

This violates the question of why people are not happy when they have a lot of money.

As mentioned in the book, money is like vitamins that the body needs, but even if you have more than the appropriate amount, you will not be happier.

In order to make a lot of money or become rich, you give up health, family, people, country, etc.

In the past, there was a saying that instructor Kim Mi-kyung said, 'Declare yourself rich.'

In other words, you should finish the goal of becoming rich and now set the goal of happiness.

I feel happy about my car when I drive, happy when I write, and happy when I look at my child.

I think money is just one of many tools that help us be happy, and it shouldn't be our final goal.


3. Don't be fooled by the fiction that says, 'They lived happily ever after.'


We only pay attention to the moment of a splendid transformation, and we don't think about the many hours that follow that make up our lives.

So we naturally expect that we will be happy if we succeed, but we realize that there is no significant change in happiness as we live.

mobile e-book: 151p


I've always thought about this as my child reads a lot of fairy tales about princesses.

Most fairy tales end with 'They lived happily ever after.'

But did they really live happily ever after?

I think this is the other side of what we think of as success.

It's not true that if you succeed, you will be happy unconditionally.

If you have great success outside of business, but you are not truly happy at home, are you really happy?

Great success does not give you lasting happiness.

Even if you buy expensive luxury bags, cars, etc., the happiness they give you is temporary.

I think that in order to be happy, you have to keep looking for things that give you constant happiness.

I think happiness is finding out 'what makes me happy?' and doing it continuously.


4. Use money for experiences.


Happy people spend a lot on 'experiences' such as performances or travel, while unhappy people spend a lot on 'material' purchases such as clothes or items.

mobile e-book: 184p


I still vividly remember my first overseas trip with a friend when I was a college student, and I miss it, and I feel happy when I think about it.

However, buying luxury goods or expensive items is far from happiness, and I don't remember it.

Happiness is subjective, so of course, some people may be happier when they remember buying luxury goods.

Since happiness is subjective, there is no one answer.

My personal recommendation is that it is better to buy experiences with money than to buy material things.


5. Be individualistic.


On the other hand, a culture where groups sometimes make excessive demands on individuals, and those who do not accept them are labeled as immature and selfish is strongly collectivistic. 

The 'happiness-deprived' countries of Asia, such as Korea, Japan, and Singapore, are representative examples. 

mobile e-book: 202p


Korea is one of the countries with the highest suicide rates, and I think collectivism is a big reason for this.

Once a trend becomes popular, everyone has to buy it, and if they don't, they feel left behind.

This kind of thinking itself is a contradiction of collectivism.

Thoughts such as competition, comparison, and selfishness have a greater effect because they prioritize the group over the individual.

Of course, as an advantage, they can create something bigger by sticking together, but now that Korea has grown into an economic powerhouse, I think it needs to change from collectivism to individualism.

In the West, individualism developed over groups because the culture of gathering/hunting developed, and in Asia, collectivism was prioritized because the agricultural society developed.

However, now is an information society, and a society where individual ability is more important.

And individualism can make us happier. You should live for your own happiness without being too conscious of other people's gaze.


6. Let's create your own happy environment.


In other words, the key point is to change your environment rather than changing your thoughts. 

It means that you need to actively find, create, and increase specific situations that induce happiness.

mobile e-book: 259p


What do I think happiness is? You need to keep finding, creating, and increasing it.

When I write, I often say that you need to change your thoughts positively in order to be happy, but I realized that was wrong.

I think that we need to embrace all of that because each person has different standards and criteria for happiness and different thoughts.

And I think that finding multiple, consistent happinesses rather than one big happiness will allow you to be continuously happy.

I believe that if you find something that makes you happy and take action to achieve it consistently, you will be happy.

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