The Reasons Why It's Difficult to Find Happiness Part 2 of 3

My favorite unhappy person is Henry Bemis, played by Burgess Meredith in the "Twilight Zone" episode called "All The Time in the World". It's about a man who would be happy just to read books, but is stopped by obstacles in his life. I love to read books, but have little free time. I can relate to him.
 

My belief is that many people are unhappy because they are living their lives the way others want instead of how they want. Perhaps they are trying to meet societal expectations or trying to fulfill a role that they never completely agreed with from the beginning.

A famous example of this was the marriage between Prince Charles and Diana Spencer. Rather than marry the woman he loved, Prince Charles "settled" for a woman to whom his parents and society preferred. And that marriage ended in disaster! Choosing to live a life solely for others can be a huge mistake.

I have repeatedly heard people say there is no such thing as being able to have fun at work; otherwise it wouldn't be work. What a horrible attitude! No wonder so many people hate their jobs.

There are probably bosses and supervisors who are trying to meet this misguided expectation by making sure that the employees are miserable. They believe that if people have fun, then they won't be productive. I would think a happy employee would have lower absenteeism, more loyalty and productivity. There really is no reason why work can’t be a pleasant place.

Fortunately, I’ve worked in places where I was happy because the boss did not believe work couldn’t be enjoyable. I laughed throughout the day along with my coworkers and boss and would be sad to go home in the evening because it meant the fun would stop. And everyone was very productive.

A person can carefully make all the right choices and still end up in a bad situation. Illness, a loss or some other hardship can enter a life. Too often, obstacles get in between happiness and a person.

Then, people try to escape from their unhappiness through alcohol, food, shopping or drugs which only makes the problem worst.

I notice that miserable people want others to be miserable, too. Have you ever witnessed this behavior in a boss or supervisor? I've seen supervisors purposely pick on employees to the detriment of the work place's productivity.

And people like to complain to each other about everything. If a person has no complaints to talk about, there is a possibility that this individual could be considered anti-social. Or strange.






Next: How to Be Happy