Would you like to know the secret to success, happiness, and wealth?

Are you sure?

SPOILER ALERT – If you continue to read, I can’t be held responsible for the outcome.

Are you still reading?

OK, Here you go….

Pysch!  Just kidding.  There is no secret formula to success, happiness, and wealth!

I’m sorry that I tricked you, but I wanted to prove a point.  We really, really want there to be a secret, magic formula to life (even though you  knew I was up to something, hence the title, you were still a little hopeful).  It hangs there as a promise that there is a missing link in the chain, a missing piece of the equation.  By finding that missing piece of the puzzle, we think we will understand why everything we’ve done hasn’t panned out perfectly: it was doomed to failure because we didn’t have the secret yet.  And so we valiantly search on, hoping that once we find the secret we can enter the ranks of the successful, happy, and rich.

The thought process goes something like this: 

1. I’m not happy right now.
2. I want to be happy and in theory I should be happy right now.
3. If I’m not happy it’s because something is missing.
4. Since I want to be happy, and what will make me happy is missing, all I have to do is find it.
5. Because I’ve looked for it and haven’t found it, it must be hidden from me – a secret.
6. Once I discover that secret I’ll be happy.

This is the inherent power of religion and advertising.  They promise access to the secret, the next step to fulfillment, whether it’s a new BMW or a cool beer, an afterlife or a savior.  The idea has followed us through history.  Even the ancient world had what were called mystery cults, where only the people in the group were told the “secret”.  And then there were the Freemasons and other secret fraternal organizations (satirized elegantly by The Stonecutters in the Simpsons cartoons).  It’s almost as if we hope that there is some giant conspiracy that is withholding this information.  Because if that’s true, all we have to do is join the club and then everything will be perfect. 

If there is no secret, though, what can you do?  Should you give up in despair?  If there is no secret formulae that is the missing ingredient in the stew of life, what can you do to make yourself happy and successful? 

You don’t have to give up striving for happiness and success.  Understand, there is a big difference between a magical secret and wisdom.  Just because there isn’t a one-stop shop to fulfillment doesn’t mean that there aren’t steps you can take to improve your life.

If I wanted to create an outdoor Koi pond, I don’t have the knowledge – the information I need to make it happen.  It doesn’t mean it’s a secret, I just have to do some digging (pardon the pun) and find out.  In the same way, if you want to increase your happiness, your success, or your peace of mind,  there is information and knowledge out there that can help.  The amount of wisdom that can be found in a library or in the experiences of an older person, for example, is staggering.

Just remember that it isn’t a magical process – it’s not a search for a hidden Holy Grail.  It’s about finding new information and assimilating it.  It’s about learning and engaging with that information in a gradual process of maturation.  Personal development, and the growth that leads to success and happiness, takes time and focus.  When you stop chasing after every new promise to “get happy quick”, you’ll begin to uncover the steps that you need to personally follow to create more happiness is your life.