What is the purpose of life? Happiness? Relationships? Money? Health? Most people say that happiness is the true purpose of life. But if happiness is the real purpose of life then why do people spend most of their life chasing money?
“Money doesn’t buy happiness.”
You might have heard this statement many times. It might have popped up on your Instagram/Facebook feed or you might have heard it from someone you knew. This statement, however, is arguable and very conflicting.
The 3 Most Important Things in Life
The three most important things in life are happiness, health, and money (not particularly in that order).
Happiness
Happiness, as I said, is what most people want. For most, it is the true purpose of life. Yet, people struggle to achieve true happiness throughout their lives. Why? It is because they were chasing things that they thought would make them happy. Your choices and actions in life determine how happy you are. In his book The Art of Happiness, the Dalai Lama said that happiness can be achieved simply by training your mind. It might not be as easy as it sounds, but that is how you can actually achieve true happiness. The source of happiness, however, is different for different people. Some might find happiness in having a lot of money. Others might find happiness in having good relationships with friends and loved ones.
Health
Health is the most important thing in life. You have to be healthy to do the things you want. If you aren’t healthy then there is no life. This not only includes physical health, but also the mental state of mind. Although you go to the gym and eat healthy food, your mind might not be as sound as you think it is. Physical exercise, a healthy diet, and meditation are ways to live a healthy life.
Money
Last, but not least, is money. Now, this is again very debatable. Is money important to live a better life? In today’s world, fuck Yes! I mean do you think that you can survive without money? In a way, money has become a necessity for survival. You can’t buy food if you don’t have money. You can’t live in a good place with no money. The society will label you as poor and might not treat you well. In a way, if you have money, you have respect. This is wrong, but it’s the way it is. You need money wherever you go. We can’t go live in a jungle, as our ancestors did. So, can’t money buy happiness?
Which is the Most Important?
Now that you know the top 3 most important things in life, how do you determine which is the most important? Again, this depends from person to person. It’s about priorities and needs.
Here’s my order:
- Health
- Happiness
- Money
Health is number one because, as I said, “no health, no life.” You won’t be able to do anything if you aren’t healthy. Happiness comes after that. If you are happy and grateful, you will be able to live a blissful life. Money comes last. Making money is not difficult if you are happy and if you have good health. How? It might sound weird but, you don’t have to have a good-paying 9-5 to make money. Instead, find something to do that makes you happy. Even if it is just a hobby. You can make money off of it, especially in today’s internet world. Yet, we see that a lot of people are sacrificing their health and happiness doing something that they don’t like, just to make money. And, they are still not satisfied with the money they make.
It’s strange to see people sacrificing their health and happiness over money. This doesn’t mean that you don’t need to make money. Like I said, money is a necessity in today’s world. The only problem is that people work for hours doing something they don’t like.
How to Have it All?
You are not happy, you hate your job because it pays less money, and you are not doing very well (health-wise) too. It doesn’t have to be like that. You can have it all. Yes, you can. How?
Find something that makes you happy.
Everyone has something that they are good at, whether it is a hobby, skill, or something that they were born with. If you say that you are not good at anything, you are lying.
Identify the thing that you are good at and start doing more of it. Learn more about it if you have to. Be the master at it.
Suppose you are good at playing the piano. It was something you learned when you were a kid at school. Back then, it was not a big deal. You took piano lessons and you played in a few programs. You enjoyed playing the piano. But then, you grew up and life happened – get a job, make money, be responsible, so on and so forth.
You now hate your job, you are not happy, and you are mentally stressed.
Well, why not go back to the time when you loved playing the piano? Instead of working on your shitty job, why not go back to playing the piano again. Buy a new piano if you have to. You can make money by giving piano lessons, playing shows, and of course, start a YouTube channel.
You now love what you do. It makes you money. You are happy. You are not stressed anymore.
Final Thoughts
It is not a bad thing to want more money. But you don’t need to work like a donkey to do so. You’ve got to figure out what you are good at and what you want in life. Do this thing and do not obsess over the outcome.
I love to write. I also love to play the guitar. But I do not obsess over how many views my articles get and how many likes I get on my Instagram post of me playing the guitar. I do those things because I love to write and I love to play the guitar. I do them for myself and not to please other people. The hate comments and the low number of likes do not bother me. The only thing that matters is that I am happy doing what I love to do. As a result, I am getting paid for my writing and for my videos on YouTube.
Whatever you do, do it with passion or don’t do it at all. Most of the millionaires and billionaires are successful because they followed their passion. They did not work at a job they hated. Instead, they understood what they wanted to do in their lives and did it. They might have sacrificed their health and happiness along the way. But in the end, they did what they loved. They found their passion and worked for it. Are you working on yours? If not, you have got to start today.
Here’s a quote by Warren Buffett, from his HBO documentary, Becoming Warren Buffett:
“You don’t want to sleep-walk through life. The important thing to do is to look for the job you would take if you didn’t need a job.” – Warren Buffett
