Daily Excerpt: How to Get Happy and Stay That Way (Romer): Don't Let Guilt Block Your Happiness

 



Excerpt from How to Get Happy and Stay That Way: Practice Techniques for Putting Joy into Your Life

ebook: Anazon Kindle

paperback: MSI Press webstore (code FF25 gives 25% discount)


Don't Let Guilt Block Your Happiness

It’s odd to think that guilt can get in the way of happiness, but I know it can because it’s happened to me. There have been times I’ve been so happy that tears come to my eyes—and then I realize something else has gotten into my head, too. That something else is guilt—guilt because I’m happy and other people aren’t.

There is no way to get around this reality: not everyone is happy. In fact, there are those who say we should never declare ourselves happy while there are people in the world who are suffering. Some individuals—writers, philosophers—proclaim that to be happy in the world as we know it is a sign of insanity.

I don’t agree with either of these concepts. To me, we are most apt to go out of our way to help those less fortunate than ourselves when we are contented, even joyful. While it is true that much philanthropy does occur out of guilt, I don’t think people aspire to be in a state of guilt. It’s not a pleasant place to be.

I have a friend who claims that guilt is actually “ego,” and there is much to be said for that view. If we are wringing our hands over all the things we should be doing but aren’t doing, and all the things we should be thinking but aren’t thinking, we are, if effect, focusing our entire attention upon ourselves. We’re trying to “play God,” or become responsible for other people’s happiness. Isn’t this actually a sign of inflated ego—thinking that everything rests upon us and only us?

If we’ve done something hurtful to someone, and can’t rest until we’ve righted the wrong, that’s one thing. We probably do need to set things straight in order to be happy inside. But a nameless guilt that rises within, at the moment of joy, to “attack” our happiness, is nothing more than insecurity, or a fear that we don’t deserve to be happy. And that, my friends, is simply not true.

We do deserve to be happy. Everyone deserves it. And if you find yourself in a state where you are happy much of the time, claim it. Then go about seeing what you can do to help others feel the same. That’s a lot better use of your time than feeling guilty!




Read more posts about Joanna and her books HERE






                                Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter

                          Follow MSI Press on Twitter, Face Book, and Instagram.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

In Memoriam: Carl Don Leaver

Image
  1948-2021 It is with great sadness that MSI Press notes the death of Carl Leaver, CEO of the Press and typesetter and graphic designer par excellence . Many authors have expressed not only condolences but also a sense of legacy from covers he designed that they love.  Here is his obituary: On August 16, 2021, Carl Don Leaver of San Juan Bautista passed into eternal rest. A forester with the US Forest Service in Idaho and Montana, he turned to nature photography while working in the Bitterroot National Forest. His photographs graced national magazine covers and on a weekly basis the local paper of Hamilton, MT, the Ravalli Republican. He later worked on photography projects for the US Army (AFEES) and taught photography at the New York Institute of Technology in Amman, Jordan. His final career change led him to computer graphics and publishing as co-owner of MSI Press LLC; his many typeset books and book covers have helped MSI Press authors win a large number of awards over t...
Read more

A Publisher's Conversation with Authors: Book Marketing vs Book Promotion

Image
It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  Today's post looks at the difference between book marketing and book promotion, two terms that are frequently confused. Leading to the confusion is that some of the same activities are needed for both. In fact, good marketing is dependent upon good promotion. Perhaps the essential difference is that marketing focuses on sales, and promotion focuses on awareness --  noting that without awareness, sales generally do not happen. Book Marketing Book marketing includes promotion, sales, and increasing awareness of the availability of the book. It generally starts with a marketing plan that identifies the target audiences and selects marketing ...
Read more