Results of a Joyful Life

So if joy is about fully engaging our lives, in the good and the bad, then what are the results of a joyful life? What does a joyful life tangibly look like?

There are three main results a person can attribute to having joy in life:

In short, when you have a joyful life, you have a natural positivity that meets life with enthusiasm and excitement, a growth mindset that encourages you to become your best self, and a feeling of acceptance that embraces both the good and bad parts of life.

People say they want a joyful life, and when questioned about why, would typically give an answer that falls under one of these three categories. But in my study on joy, I found there’s a deeper reason why people want a joyful life. This deeper meaning drives their desire for happiness and pursuit of joy.

So what is it? What is the core longing people are reaching for? Why do people want positivity, growth, and acceptance? Why do people want happiness and joy?

Here it is: joy gives us a feeling of transcendence.

My religious beliefs show me that all human beings were created with a longing for more. Anytime we experience happiness and joy, we get a glimpse of what more is.

This is why joy is inextricably tied to our potential. When people believe there is more to life, they show up more and reach their highest potential.

Every person was made to strive after their highest potential.

Our highest potential is not reserved for the elite. It’s a call for all human beings. And though everyone’s highest potential might not all look the same, it’ll still feel the same. You know when you’re living out your highest potential when you feel satisfied, yet want to expand your happiness.

Not everyone gets to this level of satisfaction. But every person deserves it.

Why is Joy Difficult Today?

The problem with joy is that most people spend much of their trying to escape life rather than engage it.

Here are some tough examples:

• People take substances like drugs or alcohol to drown out their feelings, so they don’t have to feel them and instead escape into a manufactured euphoria.
• People say they have “hard days” as a form of self-pity, so people can take care of them instead of taking care of themselves.
• People deny themselves happiness in the present moment by fooling themselves with the illusion that they will be happy once they reach their goals.
• People try to ignore negative emotions with positive thinking, forcing their emotions to get buried deep inside.
• People pour too much into relationships where they get taken advantage of because they don’t want to sit with themselves.
• People look to others to solve their needs, which then forfeits their power to make life what they truly desire it to be. The fulfillment of their needs becomes dependent on what others do for them.
• People convince themselves of excuses to justify their lack of inaction so they potentially don’t have to risk feeling shame or fear if they fail.
• People compare themselves to others on social media rather than spending time in their own life.
• People spend too much money on material things hoping that satisfaction can come externally rather than internally.
• People attach themselves to romantic ideals rather than practicing acceptance of what they have.

All of these are forms of disengagement from life.

The scary thing is—as you might see from this list that’s only scratching the surface—it’s easy to disengage from life. In fact, it’s natural.

If you are in the Disappointed or Cynical category of life, congratulations. You are normal.

As a society, we are conditioned to escape our lives. We have several forms of entertainment, luxuries, and even society principles that make a disengagement of life absolutely normal.

The only thing that separates the Disappointed from the Joyful is discipline.

People who are joyful practice joy as a discipline. That’s it. If we are not disciplined in creating joy, then by default we’ll end up in the Disappointed or Cynical category. If you want to squeeze the most out of this one life you have, reaching your highest potential and making an impact with your life, then you do not want to be in the Disappointed or Cynical category.

A joy habit will help you land in the Joyful category as you learn to grow through your difficulties.

But one thing we haven’t established yet is how joy helps people reach their highest potential. Lets briefly explore this.
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Continue to Part 5