Are You Happy?: A guidebook on how to earn happiness

By Lea Colleens

‘Are You Happy?’ is written for everyone who is unhappy; for everyone who has tried everything, has read every self-help book and has attempted every kind of ‘positive-thinking’ technique, mind-altering experience, ‘live-in-the-moment’ activity and desperate prayer imaginable - and who is still unhappy. <

• Language: English
• Publisher: Publicious Book Publishing
• Release date: May 25, 2018
• ISBN: 9780648229513

Lea Colleens

Lea Colleens, a serial wanderer and creative spirit, found herself settled in Melbourne, Australia in the early 2010s. Having studied various philosophies under her beloved mentor for ten years, she felt she had still only touched the surface of the seemingly intangible concept of happiness. As she began formulating the foundation for her current work, 'Are you happy?' she explored different forms of working and personal relationships, ranging from being the director of a feature film, The Flame Wars - a story revolving around interpersonal conflict - to studying and practicing various forms of yoga. She is currently embarking on her next book.

Book preview

Introduction

Let me ask you something. It’s a simple question, but it’s a question that’s led to scores of dumbfounded stares and torturous silences:

Are you happy?

Seriously! Are… you… happy?

Hesitating? ‘Yeeeaaah, but’, ‘I guess’, ‘Maybe…’, or ‘I think so?’

You think you are, but you’re not sure. Right?

Well then, next question: Do you know what will make you happy? The Simpsons? Santa Claus? A walk on the beach? Fluffy kittens? A baby’s smile? Sex? Getting wasted?

Hmmm… okay… we’re not on the same page here.

How do you know what will make you happy? How can you know what will make you happy? Gut feeling, intuition, propaganda?

Well, before you get ahead of yourself, here’s the million-dollar question: What is happiness? How can you possibly get something without knowing what it is?

Think about it for a minute. What is happiness? I bet the first answer that pops in your head will be something that ‘authorities’ dictated and propagandised with waves of their magic wands. Here’s the cream of the crop of failed options which have been sold to you over millennia:

•   Contentment

•   Absence of ego

•   The afterlife (Mmm hmm! But we also want to be happy while we are alive!)

•   A higher power

•   Pleasure and meaning

•   Positive thinking

•   Living in the moment

•   Self-esteem

•   Being ‘top dog’.

Sorry to break it to you, but they’re all wrong! I know… tragic!

Think long and hard about all the ‘winning’ strategies you’ve been given by your friends, neighbours, parents, partners, colleagues, teachers, world leaders, gurus, and every other false prophet scavenging the earth’s surface. Did you think they knew shit?

I mean, have these beliefs worked for them? For you? For anyone? Is the world one big happy place?

Think again.

To be frank, it’s a straightforward question, right? It doesn’t take rocket science to figure this one out… or does it?

As you stand there reading this book, in the back of your mind you’re probably still digging your heels in, believing your life is hunky dory. Yet somehow, you’re still asking yourself the same million-dollar question over and over again, pondering, wondering. What is happiness? Am I happy?

Well, the search is over. You’ve come to the right place – and just in time!

Here’s the first little giveaway:

Happiness is a state of mind in which you have certainty of future pleasures

Or, put more simply:

Happiness is certainty of future pleasures

Do you get it?

If you work towards getting what you want in your life, then, sure, you’ll reap some rewards. Nice things like sex, love, money, wealth, time (don’t you just love that?), and success. These are the rewards and pleasures you gain throughout your life as a result of what you put into it. But they don’t in themselves bring real happiness.

Real happiness is when you are certain that a whole lot more of those rewards are on their way.

It’s that simple. So, now you know the answer, what next? A definition is cool, but where’s that gonna take us?

You’ve been told time and time again that there are certain things that ‘matter’ in life: contentment, love, helping the homeless, scoring that hot chick, getting your end-of-year bonus, graduating from university, giving thanks, Facebook likes, a new job promotion. We make believe that there is more to life than happiness, but really, everything you do is ultimately in pursuit of happiness.

You may think everything you’ve been going after and looking for will lead to happiness, but how do you really know – or will you end up settling for less than happiness?

Life doesn’t have to be a constant hamster wheel of misery and suffering, despite the fact that the