Many of us have no strategy for achieving the things we want in life, while others use strategies with little likelihood of success. Many of us are trying to find peace by working more and more. We are trying to find joy by doing jobs we despise. We are trying to find happiness in all the wrong places. You need a smart strategy! You CAN have just about anything you want in life, but you need a plan and a path to get there.

Is your life working exactly the way you hoped it would? Do you have all the fun, health, wealth, friends and satisfaction you would like? Most people, of course, answer, "no." For most of us life has far too much stress. We work too hard, finances are a question, our health may not be what we wish, and so forth.

And yet we live in the richest, most blessed time in human history. We are surrounded by opportunity, money, education and travel. We live longer than ever! And yet as George Carlin used to say in his wonderful comedy routine, sometimes it seems "we are literally drowning in our own "stuff." We have more stuff, but we are not happier.

What's going on?

My sense is that very few people ever study happiness and joy. Most of us just do what the neighbors do. We do what our family and friends and colleagues do. We chase the same dreams and buy the same cars and live in the same neighborhoods, and rarely stop to ask, "What would REALLY make MY life worthwhile?" And that's a shame.

I think happiness can be had quite easily. Here are my three simple (not easy, but simple) steps:

1. Who Am I?

This is a classic question and one we rarely ponder.  As John Bradshaw noted, we have become "human doings" instead of human beings. We are too busy to keep journals, too busy to sit still and know ourselves. We forget to ask the most basic questions about who we are and what makes us happy.
We lose sight of a life that is wonderful, exciting, fulfilling and peaceful. I think happiness begins by knowing who we are. "First, know thyself."

2. What Do I Want?

The second question is to choose your direction in life. As I've written many times, you can have anything you want in life, but you cannot have everything you might desire in life. Too many of us refuse to choose. We are seduced by money, power, or "necessity." We are trapped by our own appetites for prestige, approval, and by the simple momentum of going to work every day.

We forget to ask, "Who Am I and What Do I Truly Want In My Life?" This is your one and only, precious life. What will you do with it? What do you value most?

3.  How Will I Get It?

The third step is to have a strategy. Many of us have no strategy, while others use strategies with little likelihood of success. They (whoever they are) tell us it is impossible for cities to solve congestion by building more highways. It's a tempting but ultimately futile solution. And many of us are trying to find peace by working more and more. We are trying to find joy by doing jobs we don't like. We are trying to find happiness in all the wrong places.

You need a smart strategy! You CAN have just about anything you want in life, but you need a plan and a path to get there.

And yes, there are a couple more pieces that are helpful. A support team of family and friends to cheer you on is wonderful. And, of course, daily discipline and hard work will speed things up, but the essentials are very, very simple. Know who you are, know what you want, and have a smart strategy with a high probability of success in helping you get there. The results are a joy to behold!

To aid you in your search, discovery and success, click here.

Some Quotable Quotes For YOU!

"The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for."    --  Maureen Dowd

"My success just evolved from working hard at the business at hand each day."
--  Johnny Carson

"The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive. The great opportunity is where you are." --  John Burroughs

"There is no chance, no destiny, no fate that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul." --  Ella Wheeler Wilcox

If you've tried these without success, click here.