Unconvinced

I’ve read many articles , columns and self-help blogs telling me to reach for the stars. Telling my to follow my passions and to let go. I respect that. But what if I can’t work out what it is that fundamentally drives me? What if what I want is also the very thing that will restrain me from getting those other things that I also want?

Confused yet? What I am saying is that we are not Flat Stanley’s. We are not two dimensional cartoon characters slipping between the gate, leaving our family and friends on the other side, so that we alone can get to the other side. To sound cliche, we have many layers. We are like onions.

I was recently reading an article on inc.com which basically tried to tell me how to be happier. It said:

‘…An absence of fear or insecurity isn’t happiness: It’s just an absence of fear or insecurity…’

Enlightening concept, but the author, Jeff Haden, fails to adequately prescribe what it actually means to be happy. I suspect this has something to do with the fact that everybody is different. So while Haden’s ideals are nice, they are ultimately just lofty statements. Still, his articles are a nice occasional pick-me-ups when I am in a less cynical state of mind.

One of my best mates whom I’ve known for close to a decade, and is a psychologist, tells me that I can only work for myself or for a company that I perceive to add value to society. I’ve been mulling over this since he said it to me, and the conclusion as of today, 4th October  2012, is that I either have to convince myself that the nature of my work equates to working for myself OR that the company I work for is adding value back to the community. This reminds me of my first ever job as a trainee accountant back in Sydney. We were told that we add value to society by providing assurance to the public over any given company’s set of financial accounts. I suppose it isn’t entirely untrue, it just isn’t exactly un-laughable either.

At the end of the day, I just need to convince myself.

Post script: I’ve been writing this as it relates to work, but it could easily apply to love and life too.