The Good Life
People have been thinking about the idea of The Good Life for a long time, in fact the ancient Greeks thought about it, calling the idea "eudamonia." For them, The Good Life included several things such as being able to flourish, having what is most desired, to be successful, but also to have a "good guardian spirit."
There is a youtube video about The Good Life, which is a book for people in business. I think the video can be useful for anyone to watch, and it can get you started thinking about what might be important to you and how to work toward what would be a Good Life for you.
I believe one key to having a Good Life is to think about and be aware of what's important to you and not blindly follow others or what our culture and the media may be promoting. No one else can answer for you what The Good Life would be, but there are some questions and ideas that you can think about.
Four areas to consider:
My Social World:
What would my family and friends be like? How would we treat each other? Would I spend a lot of time around lots of people or do I value quiet times at home? How much of each? What kinds of activities would I do with my friends and with my family? How important is close, intimate relationships to me? What would a close intimate relationships be like with a friend or a life partner? Would animals be part of my Social World?
My Intellectual World:
How important is learning to me? How important is creativity to me? How important is thinking to me? What kind of education would I want to have? How important would learning and thinking be to what I would do in my career and my free time? What would I need to know to have the career and free time activities I want? What hobbies might I participate in on a regular basis?
My Physical World:
Where would I like to live? What role would nature and the outdoors play in my life? Where would I like to travel and what would I see? How important is climate and weather to me? What kind of house or dwelling would support my Social World, Intellectual World, and Spiritual World? How important is food, including cooking, sharing meals with others, or growing my own food? How active would I be? What sports or activities would I engage in on a regular basis?
My Spiritual World:
(By spiritual, I don't mean religion, I mean a person's understanding on how they connect with and feel about the world around them. Even if you don't think about these connections I believe they can influence your life and affect how much energy a person has for life. In psychology, this idea is called life force and having stronger life force has been connected with better health. So your spiritual world is connected with the kinds of things that give someone energy or a "zest for living," as well as what kinds of things help a person through tough times).
Am I am optimist or a pessimist? How does that affect my energy for life? Can I find awe and inspiration in the world around me? Where would I find these things? How might I increase my awe and inspiration? What kind of things give me energy and a zest for life? How important is nature to my energy for life? When I'm down, what kinds of things help sustain me through tough times? How do I deal with stress? What keeps me going when life is hard? Do I have these supports available when I need them?
I hope these questions can get you thinking about what a Good Life is for you, if you don't already all the pieces. I also hope they help you to appreciate the ones that you do have and help you move toward having more of the parts of a Good Life. Good luck.
There is a youtube video about The Good Life, which is a book for people in business. I think the video can be useful for anyone to watch, and it can get you started thinking about what might be important to you and how to work toward what would be a Good Life for you.
I believe one key to having a Good Life is to think about and be aware of what's important to you and not blindly follow others or what our culture and the media may be promoting. No one else can answer for you what The Good Life would be, but there are some questions and ideas that you can think about.
Four areas to consider:
My Social World:
What would my family and friends be like? How would we treat each other? Would I spend a lot of time around lots of people or do I value quiet times at home? How much of each? What kinds of activities would I do with my friends and with my family? How important is close, intimate relationships to me? What would a close intimate relationships be like with a friend or a life partner? Would animals be part of my Social World?
My Intellectual World:
How important is learning to me? How important is creativity to me? How important is thinking to me? What kind of education would I want to have? How important would learning and thinking be to what I would do in my career and my free time? What would I need to know to have the career and free time activities I want? What hobbies might I participate in on a regular basis?
My Physical World:
Where would I like to live? What role would nature and the outdoors play in my life? Where would I like to travel and what would I see? How important is climate and weather to me? What kind of house or dwelling would support my Social World, Intellectual World, and Spiritual World? How important is food, including cooking, sharing meals with others, or growing my own food? How active would I be? What sports or activities would I engage in on a regular basis?
My Spiritual World:
(By spiritual, I don't mean religion, I mean a person's understanding on how they connect with and feel about the world around them. Even if you don't think about these connections I believe they can influence your life and affect how much energy a person has for life. In psychology, this idea is called life force and having stronger life force has been connected with better health. So your spiritual world is connected with the kinds of things that give someone energy or a "zest for living," as well as what kinds of things help a person through tough times).
Am I am optimist or a pessimist? How does that affect my energy for life? Can I find awe and inspiration in the world around me? Where would I find these things? How might I increase my awe and inspiration? What kind of things give me energy and a zest for life? How important is nature to my energy for life? When I'm down, what kinds of things help sustain me through tough times? How do I deal with stress? What keeps me going when life is hard? Do I have these supports available when I need them?
I hope these questions can get you thinking about what a Good Life is for you, if you don't already all the pieces. I also hope they help you to appreciate the ones that you do have and help you move toward having more of the parts of a Good Life. Good luck.