Happiness, Part 2

(Posted by Jim Sullivan)

I’d like to expand on my thoughts about happiness from last week. Readers may recall that I boldly offered a path to enduring happiness through a rather simple formula: “Do what you are in the service of others.” Let’s take a closer look the first part of that formula.

“DO WHAT YOU ARE.”

At BUILT TO LEAD, we draw a sharp distinction between two aspects of the word “work”–“LABOR” is the Latin word for “toil” or “striving” while “OPUS” means “masterpiece.”

We are all about OPUS.

We happen to believe that our clients and we are richly blessed to live in a time and place where we are free to pursue occupations that make use of our unique talents; that leverage our strengths and minimize our weaknesses; that draw forth the best from deep within us. We are no longer constrained to work in factory, farm, or mine to survive. We have our grandparents and their parents to thank for our economic freedom. It was they who sacrificed OPUS for LABOR to survive, and thereby made possible our incredible opportunities to “do what we are.”

That’s why we believe that all of us have both the privilege and RESPONSIBILITY first to understand, and then to match our gifts and giftedness, to the occupations we pursue. 

Our work with clients starts here. We know, because they tell us, that meeting this responsibility does not guarantee happiness in this life, but shirking it ALWAYS leads to unhappiness.

So, our conscious and responsible embrace of this freedom is the first crucial step on the journey to happiness. 

This response is NOT OPTIONAL for those of us who would LEAD OTHERS. Leaders, in addition to pursuing their own dreams, take on the burden of helping others achieve theirs. If they are BUILT TO LEAD, authentic leaders have uncovered and anchored themselves to their bedrock beliefs about who they are AND who they are becoming. The know where they are AND where they are going AND how to get there. Only then can their PASSIONS be linked to an inspiring VISION, towards which their PUPOSE and PROCESSES can strive. Constant practice, and learning, and discipline create in such leaders an awareness that they are always “under construction.” There are always “orange barrels” up on the road to excellence. 

Yes, it is REAL. HARD. WORK. But it is OPUS, not LABOR. It is the key to transforming a “normal” life into a great life. It is the foundation of leadership; the heart of happiness.

This is what we call CORE understanding. Building a strong CORE is the heart of becoming BUILT TO LEAD. And our “orange barrels” are up! We are refining our CORE work and calling it BUILT TO LEAD 180–the personal turnaround in 180 days to understanding your CORE and the plan to build a life of greatness. Stay tuned for more on this in the next few weeks. 

So CORE understanding is the first step to happiness. Between now and my next blog on the second step, consider this thought from a favorite author of ours here at BUILT TO LEAD, Os Guinness:

“Out of more than a score of great civilizations in human history, modern Western civilization is the very first to have no agreed-upon answer to the question of the purpose of life. The trouble is that, as a modern people, we have too much to live with and too little to live for.”

What does this mean to you personally?

Do you have “too much to live with and too little to live for“?

Why?