The Four Conditions of Happiness | #13

The Four Conditions of Happiness

No. 13— read time 4 minutes
Welcome to The Soloist, a weekly newsletter where I provide actionable ideas to help you become a healthy, wealthy, sovereign entrepreneur.

I posted an interesting observation a week or two back on Twitter that riled up some folks.

It was Albert Camus' Four Conditions of Happiness.

Can you guess which one most people took issue with? I mean, the list is pretty bulletproof.

If you guessed "freedom from ambition"...ding ding ding.

Most people, at least here in the U.S. worship at the alter of work.

But only 6% of Americans are self-employed.

So what's the beef with "freedom from ambition"?

While not many of us in the U.S. are self-employed, we tend to idolize the ambitious:

• Celebrities

• Athletes

• Business tycoons

You have to be fairly ambitious to achieve a modicum of success in those fields.

But it's not the ambition part that Camus meant. Each of us can be ambitious in certain parts of our lives.

What he meant, I believe, was freedom from the obligation to be ambitious.

The Obligation To Be Ambitious Is A Curse

It's no wonder we hear so many salacious stories of miserable actors, athletes who do stupid things, and business tycoons that are off their rocker.

Having an innate sense of obligation to be ambitious is a curse.

It seeps into your brain and takes over all your thoughts.

It can spur you to do incredible things in your career, life, and business pursuits, but make no mistake—it is not a path to happiness.

More often than not, it's a path to misery.

Creation As A Counter Balance

Bullet #4 in Camus' list acts as the counter-balance to #3.

You can be ambitious, without being obligated to it.

And the way to scratch that itch is to create.

To write.

To draw.

To sing.

To perform.

To build.

As long as you share it with the world.

Creation in solitude is a hobby.

Creation shared with the world is a craft.

So if you feel ambitious, and are smart enough to not let it consume you, go out there and create.

Share with the world what you're making.

Make some noise.

Overcome Fear Of Failure

Let me share with you a little secret.

Every successful person has dealt with their own fear.

Everyone is scared.

What separates people who create and share with the world, and those that never do, is overcoming that fear.

The trick I've used is to just hit publish.

To just jump.

It's scary as hell. But I do it.

When I built my previous startup, there was no manual for how to do it in 2013/2014.

I just jumped.

What waits for you on the other side is a world of opportunity.

Your creations take on a life of themselves and touch people from all corners of the world.

You experience personal happiness from overcoming fear, from building something, and from watching it take root and impact other human beings.

And the best forms of creation come from a place of inner stillness.

A positive form of ambition. An ambition that doesn't obligate you to create, but rather invites you to.

If you agree with Camus let me know. If you disagree, let me know too.

I read all my replies and I enjoy receiving them.

Hope you're having a wonderful Saturday.

Till next week,

Tom

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