THE CONCEPT
What is ‘Happiness Activism’?
Happiness Activism is the striving for positive social change by invoking a state of happiness within yourself and others.
As I evolved into someone who was passionate about animal rights, human rights and environmentalism, I became more aware of just how much injustice there is in the world. But focusing on all that’s wrong can be depressing and overwhelming; I noticed how easily others struggled when fighting for a cause, distressed over all the suffering and left feeling hopeless as things didn’t change quickly enough.
So I decided to take a different approach…instead of fighting, I aimed to inspire. Life had taught me that most people (me included) didn’t like being told what they were doing wrong but were much more receptive to being empowered into taking their own action.
The more I studied anthropology and by simply paying attention to my own behaviours – deconstructing and contextualising them with other people’s, I realised that there were clear patterns around an individual’s state of being.
When stressed, miserable, under pressure or upset, people tend to act more selfishly, irrationally and erratically, whereas when people are nourished, fulfilled and happy, they naturally make kinder, more compassionate and less selfish decisions.
This sparked my developed interest in truly understanding happiness and what it even meant. I concluded that happiness is divided into two things: an emotion or a state of being.
Happiness in the form of an emotion is usually brief and in reaction to something positive happening like receiving a present or a hug. Happiness as a state of being is more in reference to a person’s consistent balance internally, irrelevant of the circumstances around them at that moment in time.
People often comment saying that you can’t be consistently happy but that usually refers to an individual’s emotional happiness rather than their state of being. Being happy in your state of being means you can experience sadness, loss, grief, anger, fear or any other passing emotion whilst maintaining your peace, gratitude and contextual understanding of your temporary situation.
Emotions are more variant whereas an individual’s state of being, although also subject to change, tends to be more of a constant. Having a truly happy state of being is usually a reflection of how much self work someone has put in – how much they’ve engaged with life and exposed themselves to differing cultures, people and places, whether they’ve reflected on it and learned new skills and techniques across all areas, and if they’ve confronted their ego and are actively tackling their on-going personal shadow-work with an open mind and an honest heart. Although emotions tend to pass fairly briefly, it is possible to tap into an improved state of being through an ongoing surge of positive emotions.
Approach
I combine thorough and dynamic independent research together with consistent and expansive personal practice to channel clear, precise intentions. Maintaining healthy practices in my own life allows me to test and review them to effectively support others on their journeys to more peaceful and fulfilling lifestyles. My activism and work draws a focus on both encouraging emotional happiness in individuals and teaching essential techniques to become consciously in tune with a happy state of being. This provides a strong foundation for developing effective, attention-grabbing, unique and diverse activism that are high-impact and long-lasting.
