Oct
Keys to Happiness: Generosity
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This post is part of the Keys to Happiness Series. The keys to happiness are courage, generosity, connection, clarity, presence, non-attachment, and gratitude.
Generosity works as a hoe to till the solid soil of a hardened heart. It breaks up your solid expectations and makes fertile ground for your desires to come to life. Don’t believe me? Try this simple experiment.
For 24 hours, give a smile to everyone you see. Whether it’s the homeless guy panhandling on the corner, the police officer writing you a ticket, the customer who is complaining about merchandise, the person in the grocery line that offered to let you go before them, or your child running around in glee.
You might start out the day with a forced smile. You know the one, you grit your teeth while you coerce your two year old to put on the red shirt because the Spiderman outfit is finally in the laundry. It might soften a bit when you wish your spouse farewell just before you remember that he didn’t take the trash out. When you step outside, you might even offer a wave and light smile to the garbage collectors as they pick up the trash that you had to take out. By the time you leave the house, you’ll feel like a pro.
As you smile your way through the day, you feel lighter and more exuberant. You have a touch more energy. Lo and behold, when you encounter the disgruntled customer, your lips spread in a wide smile and joy spills over. You notice something slight as their expression softens. They lower their voice and become less animated. You are now speaking heart to heart.
If that’s what happens when you give away a smile, just imagine what happens when you give away your time. What can happen when you really give of yourself to be completely present with an ailing parent, or a screaming child, or a friend that just needs you to listen.
Imagine what happens when you give money to an organization or person that brings you joy and is working to make the world a better place.
When you give, you develop the feeling of having more than enough. You develop a sense of abundance. You begin to feel that you are giving from infinite supply. Knowing that you have more than enough, whether it’s smiles or time or money, gives you the freedom to live authentically. When you live authentically, you are happier. Joy oozes from your pores. You walk around glowing.
Cultivate caring and generosity. Happiness is the natural state of a loving heart.
In Spirit,
Nneka
October 14th, 2007 at 10:14 am
[...] Last week Nneka started an excellent series on happiness. It begins with The 7 Keys to Happiness and has continued with a post on each point. So far she has written about courage and generosity. [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
Being generous with your smiles is something that I always try to do, especially in the grocery stores. You would be surprised at the conversations that have started just from a smile to a stranger. Smiling is a great way to start and continue the day. Thanks for the reminder.