3 Paths to Happiness
Most people walk the first two paths. Few walk the third path—The path to long-lasting happiness.
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Read Time: 3.05 minutes
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.” — Robert Frost
In life, most people walk the familiar two paths to happiness.
Only a few walk the third path—the road less travelled.
But just as the poem suggests, choosing the third path makes all the difference. It’s the route that leads to lasting happiness from within.
Here are the three paths:
Path 1
I was addicted to Instagram and Snapchat in 2016.
I posted every day, every aspect of my life. I’d post something, and then refresh it every few minutes to see who had liked my photo, commented on it, or watched my story. Why?
Because I chased the likes on Instagram and the views on Snapchat. It felt amazing. I felt happy.
But the next day, I’d feel empty. So then I’d have to post something else to get that feel-good feeling again. It became a never-ending cycle.
This is the first path to happiness. I’d argue it’s the one most travelled—the Pleasant Life.
On this path, you’re constantly chasing the next thing—the next promotion, the better car, house, and clothes, the lottery, the higher status. You’re chasing the experience of instant gratification.
But the problem with this path is that your happiness is from external things. You’re searching for happiness outside of you.
And you need more and more and more of it to be happy.
Path 2
I began my spiritual journey in 2020.
It started when I picked up the book Think Like A Monk by Jay Shetty during a painful time in my life.
Because of his teachings, I began to reflect, introspect, and build self-awareness. I started to uncover my values, who I was, what my strengths were, who I wanted to be, and my purpose. I felt proud of who I was becoming. I was happy.
This is the second path to happiness—the Good Life.
On this path, you’re in flow. You’re being authentically you. You’re making your own decisions, exploring, searching, and creating your purpose. I was on this path for a few months.
But the problem with this path is that it’s not effective long-term. Why?
Because there’s only so much focusing on you that you can do.
After a few months, I started to long for something more. I longed to share what I had learned (and continue to learn) with the people around me.
This leads to the third path.
Path 3
Why did I start The Happiness Diary?
Three reasons—the first two are, perhaps, more selfish.
One, these emails are written for me. Happiness is a skill, one that needs to be practiced daily. So writing these daily emails helps me keep happiness—the insights and tips—at the front of my mind.
Two, Yogi Bhajan said: "If you want to learn something, read about it. If you want to understand something, write about it. If you want to master something, teach it." Writing about these insights and tips in a clear, simple way for others helps me understand them better.
Lastly, I hope to make an impact on the people around me.
That’s the third path to happiness—a Meaningful Life.
This is the path to eudaimonic happiness. The happiness that comes from within. The happiness you feel when you contribute to and make an impact on others. The happiness you feel from being of service to others.
This is the path to lasting happiness.
Final Thoughts
How can you start to live a meaningful life?
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to quit your 9-5 to be happy, to create a meaningful life.
You can work a 9-5 and then do things that are meaningful to you and contribute to others in the evenings or on the weekends.
What does this look like?
Maybe, a meaningful life to you is leading a meditation group to share your mindfulness practices to help people feel more at peace.
Maybe, it’s teaching kids to play the piano to share your love of music and its therapeutic benefits.
Or maybe, it’s being a personal stylist to help people feel confident in their bodies and themselves. It’s different for everyone.
So, figure out what that looks like for you.
Go live it.
P.S. If you need more guidance on figuring out what a meaningful life is for you, read this.
Before You Go
Thank you so much for reading today’s entry!
I’d love for you to respond to this email to let me know:
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I’d really appreciate it if you could reply because it helps me understand what you’re interested in learning more about and to make sure what I write is helpful and valuable for you. I read every single reply. 😊
With all my love,
Irene
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