Happiness. How to Make the Right Choices. A New Book and Article

- Ayn Rand

Admittedly, the first component that defines us and, indeed, shapes our mood, as well as determining if we will be happy or not, is our free will. In making effective use of this very important tool we are endowed with the ability of making choices. Everyone does it - every day and every second of each day. Choices are our ability to select one material thing over another, perform a task, or to conduct ourselves in certain way, in preference to all other(s). These all others are the alternatives which we have rejected in preference to the one we chose. Choices may, indeed, be the need to choose between two things/conducts which may be similar, or dissimilar, to each others.

 



Example: To be a criminal or not to be a criminal is largely a matter of choice, save where there is definitive evidence of disease being present in the mind or the brain of the individual. I have deliberately omitted the idea of ignorance in the process of making choices. The reason for this will be clearer as we go along. But let us return to choices. The choices that we make are derived from selecting from many available and varied options. Example: Paths to making money, or getting rich, are never defined as being only one way. We may go through, say, the stock market, selling goods on the high street, home business, farming and many others to make money. We may also decide to do nothing - a clear position of poverty, by choice!

 

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Our ability to decide to choose ‘rightly’, Continue ...Buy Now

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In addition, it is important to point out that nothing happens by chance. Our present circumstances - financial, health, marriage/relationship (at this stage, you may wish to review the list I gave in the Introduction) etc., is a direct result of the choices which we made in the past, or those choices which were made on our behalf. Equally, our future position, as I stated at the start of this book, is clearly defined by our present position. The decisions that we make now will determine our future circumstances....Continue ...Buy Now

 


 

Children are in a position to make legally binding choices at different ages, depending on the laws of the country in which they live. On average, the age at which they can make these decisions is between 16-21 years. However, children below these ages generally have the right to decide for themselves on basic choices, say, for example, whether or not the child wants to eat. The child can choose to eat a particul.... Continue ...Buy Now

 

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As I have mentioned, choices are made under the influence of free will. The question to be answered now is: How is the process of choice making presented to us? The answer to this question calls for the examination of how we receive and weigh up information. Information is simply the collection of useful data, or facts. We receive data via the senses of sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing. .... Continue ...Buy Now

 

The concept of‘intend to do’ is extremely powerful. This is our act or conduct that is creative in nature and transformative in character. It causes changes in the person and the environment in which the act, or conduct, is directed. It is always futuristic - affecting the next second, the next hour, the next day, the next week, the next month, the next year and even the centuries to come..... Continue ...Buy Now

 

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Using the tool of free will, when a choice has been made in the process of decision making, then the choice becomes a desire. A desire, therefore, is a yearning to accomplish or to possess something, the aim of which is either to make an impact (positive or negative) on one’s self or on others or to influence the world around us. Often, if not always, it tends towards self preservation or tries to ward away potential threats. It is also possible that we may first have a desire, and then this desire is then followed by the process of choosing between various options...... Continue ...Buy Now

 

Desire is different from intention. Desire can, and should, be transformed into intentions. Example: I may desire something but I do not have the intention to obtain it. Say, for example, I desire a college degree. I merely wish that I could have it. However, if I have considered all my circumstances, I may come to the conclusion that I cannot possibly obtain it. Then that desire is shelved.

On the other hand, if I have a burning desire, together with a strong motivation to achieve it, then I have the intention to obtain it. It preoccupies me. It means I have considered that I will be pleased if have it. Even if it is economically unwise I will be satisfied. The moment I start to take steps, no matter how small, towards obtaining the degree, and then I am beginning to bring my intention to fulfilment. This fulfilment is a critical landmark in our road to happiness and, as a result, it should be well noted.

Also, it should not be confused with the element of luck which occurs when our expectation is uncertain but, when we have obtained such expectation, the result may have exceeded what we had hoped for in terms of our ability or the efforts we invested in such an endeavour. We call this luck. This is the case with the happiness that lottery winners experience.Similarly, the luck becomes a blessing when the fulfilment so much exceeds our expectations, and with little or no effort on our part. Alternatively, we may not, in fact, have desired it. Continue ...Buy Now




Table of Contents

Acknowledgement

Preface

 

Dedication

Introduction

 

 

Chapter One          Free Will and the Choices that We Make

 

Chapter Two          The Choices that We Make Impact on Our Happiness

 

Chapter Three       Factors that Influence the Choice Making.Process. Part I: The Individual

 

Chapter Four         Factors that Influence the Choice.Making Process. Part II: The Individual

 

Chapter Five         Factors that Influence the Choice Making.Process. Part III: The External Influences

 

Chapter Six          The Impact of Faith and/or Religion on  Happiness

 
Section II              False Keys to Happiness

 
Chapter Seven      Factors which Affect Happiness but which Do Not Result in Happiness

 

 

Chapter Eight       The Sustenance of Happiness

 

Chapter Nine        How to maintain a State of Happiness

 

Chapter Ten         Events that Can Alter the State of Unhappiness

 

Chapter Eleven    Unlocking the Gate and Entering into the Realm Of Happiness