Which of these is your top priority?

There's an old axiom about attaining things in life and it goes like this:
BE - DO - HAVE
It means that if you are a certain way (BE) you'll act a certain way (DO) and then you'll have certain things (like happiness) in your life. Of course you can choose to BE any way you want and that would dictate your results.

I first heard of it in a marketing book. Most people seem to operate like this:
HAVE - BE - DO
They want to have stuff so they pursue success and recognition to exclusion of all else. But what they usually end up with is, in the end, disappointing to say the least. Henry Ford was once quoted a saying that he was happier when he was just a mechanic. He died in ill health at 83 alone in his arm chair at his big empty house, called Fairlane, which was his estate in Dearborne.

You're right about happiness not being increased by winning the lottery. I read a report where researchers found that a person who's lost the use of their limbs (paraplegic) is about on the same on the happiness scale as the lottery winner is after one year.

Says a lot I think.

Thanks Crystal brian. Looks like "more Happiness" is trumping the game here.
Interestingly happiness seems to affect many outcomes including physical health.
That "crossover" is the type of effect that my invention (H.E.R.O.) works on. It's part of what I call the "Mobius Effect".

Thanks Abul-Hussain for your reply.

I believe happiness is a state of mindset so I don't know about the "destination" or the "pursuit" description. Sounds like we have to chase after it or something.

If genuine happiness is part of a type of immunity, as I think it to be, then it's really a "discovery" more than anything else.

Also, once it's discovered then how can it go away?

Thanks for taking the time to write a reply. Hope everything is good for you in the UK.

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I am completely aggried with you .If you are HAPPY with your life you can earn more and more money and can chase your time as well.

For me I often wish I had more time, perhaps my time management skills are lacking... More time to work and make money and more time to spend with family would make me happy at this point in my life.

Great. But wouldn't the love you say you seek bring you happiness?
If so then should we say your choice is happiness?

Just a thought. Thanks for commenting.

Indeed. I totally agree.
There's a quote I like by Alfred D'Sousa that goes like this:

"For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, some thing to be got through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life."

I agree completely. If some "variable" changes, and then in turn changes you, that would mean that the state of your life is subject to all forces outside of you. Can't be a good thing.
Thanks for your comment.

Great reply. I think you're right on with your observation about money and happiness. In the "BE - Do - Have" dynamic you have to "be" in a particular state first before everything that follows can be enjoyed. You're on the right track. Tell the world.

Well Happiness is what we all want. And I was thinking about what happiness really is.. I figured out for me, happiness is feelings GOOD feelings on a constant basis and have a feeling that you will be feelings those good feelings in the future, like you know you will feel good. And I think this is most important.

Take care

By nature humans are hard wired for happiness. That's why we get all nervous and jerky when someone messes with our ability to be happy.

Happiness of the people I love.

Thanks MOBIUSMAN for your really cool post.
I will choose MORE HAPPINESS.
Because my parants and friends are more for me rather than anything.
I wish we will always live a happy life forever.

The truly happy people I know don't have "happiness" as a goal in life. They aren't the most ambitious nor the very poor - they are often those who live a simpler lifestyle but their needs are met in terms of income and time. The priorities are not "more" but "sufficient" as far as money goes.

I don't think it's possible to become happy because you wish for it or strive for it. The idea that happiness is a constant in any life is a fallacy as it comes and goes - and often at times least expected.

But to enjoy fully the moments of happiness you have in life its best to live in a way that allows happiness to happen. You can't do that if you are worried about a roof over your head, or food for your family.

Get your life in order so you have the basic "stuff" you need covered and be thankful for what you have - happiness will find you.

kay

More Egoism

Better looks
More muscle
More power
More hypnotic aura
More adventure
More control

Yes.. that´s a good one. I vote more control as nr 1.

More money

Cause I can buy some happiness and don't need to work hard so I could have more time to do something that I interesting

I will arrange these things in ascending order according to my priority_
1) More time
2) More money
3) More success
4) More happiness
I believe if you have enough time to work hard you will earn more money , more money means more success and if you are successful,you will be definitely happy, happier and happiest.

Undoubtably I will also choose Happiness like others, because whatever we are doing is only for our happiness.A happy person can earn every thing like name, fame and money.

More happiness and then more time to enjoy it

Happiness of course. Being happy is the most important thing in this world. People seek happiness in money but in the end they end nothing but loneliness.

I would prefer happiness. I hope this helps. Will you be reporting the results? Curious to know.

Hi,

Time is Time and each day we have the same amount of time ( or of live )...So i can't have more time, but i can manage my time depend of my priorities...and no time is not Money - TIME IS TIME...priceless

What about Money? - Money is like a tool to get what you want or to live your lifestyle your desire...

What about happiness? If you get what you're really want, your desire ( your dream) your lifestyle ( no matter what it is ), happiness is at your door...As a man said : if you want to be happy, start by doing things that make you happy...simple yes but how many people apply this principle?

What about my priority?
sorry but i can't give a priority because for me everything work together...If i get more money, i'll live more and more my lifestyle so more happiness and more time for my priorities...If i get more happiness it's mean that i started to make things that make me happy, and take the time to do it with when its necessary spend the money to make it real...
It's like a circle everything seem independant but everything work together...

If i had to do a choice i'll choose extraball of time - more than 24h/day like Yes you win 15 years more...Congratulations...but it's not a choice in the real life...because live it's like a bank a magic bank...
You get 86420$ each day in your account - But you have 2 rules - First you need to spend every $ by day you can't save money everything need to be spend at the end of the day...
Second rule - The bank can close your account like that without tell you when, why? just like that and you can't manage it...
So each day you receive 86420s of live, everyday...but it can stop like that...you don't where? when? why?
So what's the most important $86420 or 86420s of life...? great question
TIME because you can't buy TIME - you live time, you spend time...but you can't Buy it;:...NEVER...

Maybe i should say Time...

anyway..take care of your time...

My top priority is my happiness. I want to be happy all the time.
Irrespective of money, whether I have a lot of money or no money, whether I'm thin or fat, whether I have time or not...I want to be happy.

Happiness is not a function of money or time. It has to do with your self-esteem & faith in yourself!

Thanks for asking this question... serves as a reminder!

Hands down happiness

Hi EIH888.

I would quantify happiness this way:

First and foremost authentic happiness depends on totally intrinsic (inside) things.
All that stuff that's outside of you (extrinsic) is capable of manipulating your state of happiness but that's more of an interruption from what I'd call 'media' (Everything your 5 senses can detect outside of you is media).

Happiness, real happiness, comes from the gut. That's where you feel it most. There are valid physiological reasons for that but I can't really get into it here. (My blog has that.)

Real happiness doesn't go up on a big high and only slightly modulates downward on any given day. Steadyness is a feature of real happiness.

Having real happiness should not be confused with satisfaction. In other words it's possible to be happy but not necessarily satisfied.

Hope this makes sense,

David

i,m agree with that opinion

Mine is other too. Alike activebiz, just in different way of language.

I look for problems. Try to discover best solutions. And provide it to whom have them.

Man... I need to enhance my English skill :p

EDIT: I vote also for Kay King's and kitfanc's posts

Great observation here. So true I think. Helping is giving of yourself. In the universe, like in the quantum world, everything is topsy turvy. You give away - and you get back in return.

Thanks.

Very nice reply rick. Very thoughtful and sensitive. I think you've added a certain poignancy to the connection between happiness, and all those 'intrinsic' things I wrote about earlier.

I also like the down to earth tone of your examples.

Thanks for posting this.

Funny how this works sometimes. If you say you need more money to be happy then your happiness level will go up and down like a yoyo depending on your income.

Personally, I'm not satisfied (there's too much pain in the world for that) but I'm happy.

...David

I think you (and apparently a lot of other warriors) see the light here.

Lame for sure. Just check out most of the stories of the celebs. How happy do you think Tiger Woods is right now?

I agree with you that, when it's all said and done, we really aren't perusing success are we? We're really after a more lasting and abundant happiness.

In the end that's our real bank account balance that matters.

Whilst I strapped for cash at the moment (very heavily in debt) my first priority would be more energy (physical and mentally (if that's the right expression)) and I suppose what the more energy would do is allow me to achieve more in the time I have.

In addition and related I would like more unshakable focus as distractions are also taking me away from my goals (and stealing my time)

Wow, your "quick post" really made me think...

I would initially choose happiness, but on second though I'm going a little deeper with number 4 (other). Our ultimate goal is to be happy. Everybody wants that. But do you know what makes you happy?

For me, I'd say "sense of accomplishment". I have all the time in the world and all the reasons to be happy... (not saying I'm unhappy) but I feel anxious all the time, worried about the future...

But every now and then something happens that gives a sense of accomplishment and completely changes my day! For me, this is the missing ingredient of "happiness".

Right on Robrave.

Do you think that there might be a happiness deficit in the world?

Thanks for your reply.

I'll add you to the "I-choose-happiness" stats data. You are certainly not alone
that's for sure.

I think there is a real swing happening these days towards intrinsic things over extrinsic material things. More and more people are finding that, after a certain benchmark is reached where the necessities of life are met, those (material) things don't add to happiness very much.

Interesting reply Jamian and I do respect your point of view. I'm not trying to convince you of anything here but for the sake of clarity in the discussion I need to point out some things here.

Firstly, you are right about not being too happy when you have no money if your existence is threatened because of it. By that I mean you have no place to live or no food to eat.

My question may not have said so but what I am assuming in this post is that baseline needs for one's living are being met every month continually.

So, therefore given this fact having "no money" may mean different things to different people.

Interestingly, psychologist and author Mihaly Czikszentmihalyi gave a relevant talk on happiness on the Ted forum. At 4:16 into it he points out what his studies show about the relationship of money and happiness over many years.
Check it out and please come back and tell us what you thought.
YouTube - TEDtalksDirector's Channel

Thanks for your reply.