HOW TO BE HAPPY

Peggy Williams - a renowned AT teacher who died in 2003 at 87 – visited Sydney in 1984. 

As she gave lessons at my Alfred Street training school, she told stories about FM and her training at Ashley Place. 

One story, in particular, stands out.

Peggy told us that it was very hard for her in the beginning. She was 31 and did not understand half of what was going on during the training. Often in despair, she would try to hide. She was often crying in the toilet until one day FM discovered what was happening.

FM sat her down and explained to her how it was. As he finished, he remarked:

“You know dear, I am happy all the time.” 

Peggy admitted to us that from then on, she began to appreciate the work differently. She realized that FM did not call it “the work” for nothing.  

It’s work to be happy all the time.

I’ll get back to this, but first, let me segue into another idea…
    
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I’m a fan of Noam Chomsky. His primary method of political discourse is to question the assumptions folded into a question. I recently watched him being asked: 

QUESTION: “What is the difference between a freedom fighter and a terrorist?”

CHOMSKY: “There is no real difference. Both perpetrate acts of terror. It’s the wrong formulation. You should ask different questions.” 

And he continued in a brilliant and enlightening turnaround that challenged conventional assumptions. Not only in politics, it’s true in life. 

Wrong assumptions led to wrong questions. Here’s one of them:

“What do I need to do to be happy?”

Within that question, there’s an assumption of happiness being “the reward.”

It’s the movie when you get home, the drink after 5 pm, a game online– a pleasure you give your Self as a prize for your behaviour. Reasonable enough, right? Even biologically sound – AND YET. 

Does it really promote success?

Happiness is the cause, not the reward.

Ask this question instead:

Is it success that breeds happiness, or happiness that breeds success? 

If you believe the former, then your behaviour is full of little rewards for hard work done. If you believe the latter – a different formulation in Chomsky’s world – then you arrive at a very different question:

“How can I be happy and love what I am doing right now?”

What would it be like if what you were doing was your reward?

Now that’s a crazy world. A world where you are ONLY doing what you want to do. It’s not the doing that makes you happy, it’s ‘the happy’ that makes you do.

Step 1 of ATSuccess 12 Steps is built on that radical proposition: happiness as cause.

Build a business that comes from your happiness, not the one that makes you money. Money does not flow to need, just as a girl will resist dating a needy guy.

On the ATS Foundations Course – we start there. Where are you already happy? Where is it that your doing flows infinitely?

Find that, and you’re on your way to success.

I recently decided to make this course – that hundreds of teachers have studied – available at half price for a while. Someone out there needs this now. When you purchase, make sure you enter in this coupon code:

ATSF-50-OFF

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