The "not-now"

The last two weeks hasn't been that great. While talking to a friend, I had to remind him (and myself) that my life is pretty good in general...but the day-to-day specifics have just been bogging me down lately. So what better way to remind myself of my happiness than taking a quiz on Oprah's website!

The "quiz" (not necessarily worth doing yourself) is just 5 quick questions. I missed "extremely happy" by 1 point, and was offered this automated advice:

If you scored somewhere in the middle, happiness expert Dr. Robert Holden has some advice on how to live a more satisfying life. Dr. Holden says the key to being happy is overcoming "destination addiction," which he defines as "living in the not-now."

"It's always about tomorrow, so you're chasing 'more,' 'next' and 'there,'" he says. "You promise yourself that when you get there, you'll be happy. And I promise you, you won't, because you'll always set another destination to go for."

Instead, Dr. Holden says if you are unhappy with your life or looking to improve your score, there are two things you can do. "We have to learn to let go of our past, we have to give up all hopes for a perfect past. Let the past go, it's gone." After that, he says, "Take a vow of kindness. Be kinder to yourself and to others.

Sounds good to me, but much easier said than done. My 'destination addiction' isn't fueled by making my life better necessarily...just the feeling that I want to contribute more and be using my skills to their fullest. Until that happens, I'll still be a little restless, thinking about how tomorrow can be a step forward instead of just shifting my weight.