Are You Living The Life You Imagined?

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Today is cool and rainy. It is a perfect Sunday to relax and recharge for the upcoming week. I decided to include one of my writings in the blog today. I have about twenty different topics I want to write about and this one seemed like a good place to start. It is called “Are You Living the Life You Imagined?” and it raises some questions about life goals and provides some thoughts on the effect of society and advertising on our happiness.

Are You Living The Life You Imagined?

How many of us live the life we imagined for ourselves as children? What is holding you back from your dreams? Most people would say it's lack of money. Money should not stop you from achieving your goals. If you are passionate about something, you should ask yourself: What can I do today to get where I want to be tomorrow? Find a way to make every day a new adventure.

While this seems like a daunting task, the first place to look is your job. Work is necessary to provide for your needs (and wants). While it may be necessary to work until you are financially and emotionally ready to pursue your passion, there will be other obstacles to overcome. Our society is extremely status-based, which causes us to focus on living up to the standards set or expected by others. In many people’s minds, what you do is more important than who you are. You must accept that people will judge you. We are defined by our physical appearance, education, occupation, and material possessions. Society creates stereotypes that are not always true. Is a doctor a better person than a garbage man? If you chose the doctor, how can you tell?

Because of society’s standards, we live the life others think we should live, not the life we imagined for ourselves. We live in a society dominated by the media and advertising. Advertisers tell us we are unhappy. They tell us the products they offer will solve our problems and increase our happiness. Advertising persuades people to emulate unattainable wealth, striving for material possessions that, in reality, do nothing to increase happiness. It is proven that an individual’s happiness level increases very little once his/her basic needs are met. There may be initial spikes in happiness caused by external events, but his/her happiness level will always return to a predetermined baseline. Lottery winners often experience this surge in happiness and its eventual collapse. The only way to true happiness is to look inside yourself. You must be the person your truly are. Live your dash.