By Mary Jaksch
This is a crucial question: what makes your life worthwhile? And you need to know the answer. Because if you know what does, you can do more of it – and feel happier. Although this is a crucial question, we don’t tend to ask it very often.
The question is not only important for us as individuals, it’s crucial for our communities and countries. At present, the well-being of a country is rated by the GDP, the Gross Domestic Product. But is that really a relevant benchmark?
Chip Conley – one of the new breed of compassionate entrepreneurs – went in search of a business model based upon happiness. In an old friendship with an employee and in the wisdom of a Buddhist king, he learned that success comes from what you makes peoples’ lives worthwhile. Watch the video below and then skip down to my final question.
So, here is the important question:
What makes YOUR life worthwhile?
Please share your thoughts in the comments.
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Terrific video, Mary. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. What makes my life worthwhile is inspiring change and hope in people’s lives. My daughter’s life, my friends’ lives, my readers’ lives. Today, a woman commented on my blog that she thought the post was amazing and she was going to share it with the ladies in her eating disorder group. That touched me very deeply. It is something intangible that I can count. It is a measure of something worthwhile. And it reinforced how much this journey of blogging is truly making my life worthwhile, and I hope inspiring change and hope in other people’s lives.
.-= Katie´s last blog ..How to Sustain Change- Week 7 of the 7-Week Life Cleanse =-.
This is a very powerful question Mary. The video is very insightful. Thank you for sharing it with us.
What makes my life worthwhile is: loving and being loved by the people who matter to me the most. Being at peace and inspiring others to live a more peaceful life moment by moment. A simple life of peace and love.
.-= Manal´s last blog ..5 Easy Steps to Understand and Deal With Temptation =-.
Mary,
I’ve just watched this upbeat, positive video first thing in the morning- and it certainly has put a bounce in my step!
It is a revelation to hear Chip talk of basing his business philosophy on the fundamental idea of ‘happiness’. Usually, the qualities which are admired in the pursuit of capitalism are ruthlessness, hard-heartedness, and number crunching.
I guess that the reason ‘intangible’ qualities of living are not at the top of business and political priorities is that they are so much harder to measure. A $ on the profit sheet is easier to count than a smile on the face. Chip makes a powerful argument for a rethink on how we view this.
Things like my car, home, or objects I own don’t make my life worthwhile. But I value such things as my ability to be positive, to be creative, my health, and enjoying the sense of being part of a community with friends and family.
These may be intangible, but the very old maxim holds: “money can’t buy happiness”.
I found this BBC link which looks a little more on this area of happiness, business, and politics which I hope other readers will find interesting:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/happiness_formula/default.stm
Mary: What a great post and an amazing video. Thanks for sharing it. It really drove home an important message about the things we are investing our time and energy in. It is so easy to decide what we want in the long term and usually that goal is loaded with intangibles such as happiness and real satisfaction, but the question really is have we set up our lives in such a way that they can actually deliver on the intangibles. Are we investing our energy and effort in the right areas or are we just working on things that may not actually provide us with the satisfaction we desire. Thank you so much for sharing the video and the thought provoking question. I think I am still finding my answers about what I am really doing in my life that is worthwhile, but I definitely feel I am at least on the right track. I really think this was a great post and an amazing question that points us in the direction of the truth we need to realize. Thanks for this post.
.-= Sibyl-alternaview´s last blog ..30 Things I Wish I Knew Earlier in Life =-.
To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to leave the world a better place; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. (- R W Emerson)
All this makes life worthwhile…
–
Namaste,
This is a reminder that our choices, when based on the intangible, will produce a life that reaps benefits that will take us in the direction of our spirit. A life lived totally on how much we can have, leads us away from the invisible soul. Our everyday actions inspire the major direction our life will take!
Thank you, Mary (and Chip), for for asking us an inspiring question!
.-= beth vendryes williams´s last blog ..Life happens… what about those plans =-.
Great video.
I read the headline to this article last night before going to bed. I didn’t read the article – just the headline. First thing this morning, I read the article and watched the video. I knew last night when I read the title, as well as this morning, that my kids make my life worthwhile. Unconditional love for them and from them (they’re still young and don’t hate me yet!) makes my life worthwhile.
John
.-= John´s last blog ..Gardening Update =-.
Love, respect, inspiration and contribution are all highly worthwhile and rewarding. Goodness, I’ve spent a substantial part of my life with ‘providing for my family’ as my ultimate meaning.
Now, I’m older and my family is grown up. Now, what I find gives meaning to my life is ‘finding out stuff’. Finding out what the history of a town is, finding out what the names of the wildlife and flowers are. Finding out how the process of evolution has affected life. Finding out what makes me tick. Intellectual persuits perhaps, but so fulfilling.
I guess my ‘explorer’ mindset is what drives me. I know other people are driven by different motivations. Just as well – a world of just one mindset would be very flat indeed.
Bhutan is discussed in the book “Geography of Bliss.” GNH is an amazing concept that gives me comfort about the world’s future.
The number of connections with loved ones (family, friends, people I meet on the street counts). Doing activities I love (treating people, being outside, exercising) counts.
That’s all I count! As always, awesome Mary!
what makes life worthwhile for me? a simple Q to be answered: knowing that enlightenment is dawning. and not only on me but on many others. living enlightenment is living in the present moment through meditation. living in the present moment you are full of and overflowing w bliss and peace. as bad moods effect us and are infectious, so are bliss and peace. many beings emanating bliss and peace will bring about a change in other people’s consciousness, in the environment and collective consciousness… then many beautiful things can and will happen…
.-= Udaysree´s last blog ..Artist Interview- Chai with… Digital Media Spiritual Artist Ben Drewry =-.
Mary, I really appreciate how you ask one powerful question that cuts to the heart of the matter. How amazing to find a business model based on happiness! What makes my life worthwhile is the remarkable opportunity I have had to receive teachings from the some of the greatest Buddhist masters in our lifetime, then to study and practice them, and share them with others in simple ways. I find this the path to lasting happiness.
.-= Sandra Lee´s last blog ..Personal development kitten style =-.
Connection.
.-= Tisha Morris´s last blog ..8 Ways to Bring in Abundance Without Spending a Dime- =-.
A worthwhile life for me is one in which I pay attention and experience everything with my face full to the wind. A big part of that for me is connecting, sharing and serving others and feeling like I’m making a contribution, even in small ways.
I can’t watch this video on my phone, but from the comments I can’t wait to do so when I get to a computer. In the meantime, what makes my life worthwhile is trying to be the best person I can be, and inspiring others to do the same. The beauty is that it’s a life’s work that permeates every aspect of my life, and it’s a constant challenge! Now, I’m grateful that I have an inspiring video to look forward to! Thanks, and I wish you a wonderful day!
.-= Claire – Gratitude Connection´s last blog ..Today Im grateful for =-.
Great video, thank you for sharing it!
A worthwhile life – good friends, passion, adventures, pursuing dreams and becoming who we once wanted to be
.-= Aileen´s last blog ..Have a Ball and Release Stress with This Simple Massage Technique =-.
I LOVE Chip’s business model. I have always conducted my NYC corporate career with my focus on creating a peaceful path and supporting the people around me — those I served, customers/clients, those that worked for and with me and those I worked for. This mindset served me well in my business life and watching this video and contemplating your question, I find it is the same mindset I use in my personal life as well as the one I have been trying to apply to the emerging business model for my budding new business venture. I love Ascetic Angel’s, John’s and Barrie’s responses. Here are my thoughts, my version: my life is worthwhile for the love of my amazing children, for the people (and creatures) I touch and change in a positive way, for making someone’s, anyone’s, anything’s path in life easier and more pleasant in the smallest and biggest ways I can. Thanks, Mary, for the reminder… I needed this insight just now to recognize my contendedness in my personal life and as a nod of approval that I am focused on the right stuff in my budding business.
.-= Maggie Mae´s last blog ..You CANT Make This Stuff Up- =-.
The people I am blessed to draw to me make life worthwhile.
.-= Clearly Composed´s last blog .. How Fast Is Fast =-.
This moment of now make my life worthwhile.
Francesco
.-= Francesco´s last blog ..Make it happen or let it happen The Power of the Undivided Attention =-.
Mary, another great thought provoking post and back up video. A brilliant observation question by Chip about how a ‘mere’ toilet cleaner actually had another belief in mind in that she was looking after people so far from home. Just goes to show that anything and everything can be worthwhile if it’s worthwhile to us. So, your question just demands a (self) answer. My life is made worthwhile by someone saying, “Thank You”. That I gave someone something that they felt so happy to receive they wanted to appreciate it, be it a smile, opening a door for them, some inspiration, or telling someone I love and always have and will. The ‘thank you’ is true, honest gratitude back even if I don’t know them or will ever meet them again. A beautiful post that made me realise what really matters in my life as Einstein rightly said in the video.
.-= John Sherry´s last blog ..How To Flip It And Win =-.
There is so much that make life worth while. Had I encountered that question as a teenager or even in my twenties I would have had difficulty with that. Finding the love of my life, the birth of our daughter, those were transforming events and the beginning of the journey. Many detours, many destinations, in the end, it seems that I make my life worth while. As I spend more time focused on others and a little less on me, I find that it becomes more worthwhile and more enjoyable.
Thank you!
.-= Occasionallyserene´s last blog ..Serenity can enter your life when you least expect it =-.
Wow Mary!Thanks for sharing something so uplifting. What makes my life worthwhile is the desire and dream of making a difference to the lives I touch. Be it my daughter’s or the chap who opens the door for me at the mall. Growing and challenging myself to change is another thing that makes my life worthwhile.
Thank you for making me think of all this. Blessings.
.-= Prerna´s last blog ..5 Simple Ways to Save Money on Groceries =-.
The video is wonderful and raises crucial issues of what to measure and how. So often the default for managers is to measure the easy things: how many tasks did we do and how long did it take? They never get to the question of how well we did our tasks.
What makes my life worthwhile is having valuable work to do, relationships I value, the natural world (except for biting insects), cooking healthy food and eating it with my BF, music, and communications (writing, reading, and speaking).
.-= Madeleine Kolb´s last blog ..Big Piece of Alzheimer’s Puzzle Solved =-.
This post/video hit me strongly as an educator. Many teachers burn out when they start to forget that the students in their classroom are people, not just potential test scores or ways by which their egos can be inflated.
Making connections is more important than any curricular piece of knowledge we could ever share. As I think back on the teachers who meant something to me in my own life, I remember very little of the actual content they taught. What I do remember is that they cared about me as a person and were willing to push me to be my best.
To answer your question, the relationships I build with those students, along with my relationships with family (and now the online community) are what gives my life meaning.
Not that the message isn’t great and to be taken to heart, but Bhutan itself is no shangri-la. Discrimination and exile of minorities, severely curtailed rights and freedom of expression, enforced cultural homogeneity, etc… Don’t take this analogy too far, but Bhutan in many ways is a Buddhist, cheerier, functional version of North Korea. Jus’ sayin’.
Gassho Dear Reader,
What makes my life worthwhile ~ I WON the first race I was ever in. Out of a million sperm and egg(s)
I WON!
“Oh, earth, you’re too wonderful for anybody to realize you. Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it ~ every, every minute?”
- Thornton Wilder Our Town ~
In Metta,
Jalus
Namaste’
Living in the moment. Doing what is in front of me. Not worrying about the future. Finding adventure in each day.
Yup, that’ll do it. You have my arpecpiation.
Connecting deeply with others about things we care about.