Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Jose Garcia
Corri Ditch
English 115
28 February 2018
Happiness is a feeling everyone gets at one point or another, although it might be hard to
identify, it can be very satisfying to know what makes a person feel that way. Throughout the
past few days, I evaluated my experiences of happiness and performances in different spaces.
Determining what makes you happy can help you become a better person and seek your true
passion in life. During the time I was analyzing my experiences of happiness I found difficult to
determine what made me feel happy. I looked closely at two different spaces in which my
perspective on happiness changed and later determined what it was about the place that made me
feel that way. I looked at the articles in the “Pursuing Happiness” book by Matthew Parfitt and
articles from authors like Laozi Epictetus. Many of the authors in this novel are well-known
philosophers, phycologist, and spiritual leaders. These authors like Laozi and Epictetus helped
me shape my understanding of happiness and get a coherent idea of how my happiness changed
in different spaces. Everyone might have a different reason for why something or somewhere
makes them feel happy. This can be different for each person, but in my case, I found happiness
at my internship. In many cases work can be affiliated with unhappiness and being miserable.
This is sometimes due to the person not having a passion for their line of work. Finding your true
happiness will motivate you to become a better person and seek happiness within it. It was in my
internship that I learned my true passion for helping others with technology. At work, I am
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surrounded by people I really care about which was another reason for my happiness. The
different experiences of happiness I had were determined by the people I was around as well as
my passion for whatever it was I was doing in that space. In my case, my passion for technology
Some people might argue that money and materialistic possessions are the true meaning
of happiness. This is not the case for me since I never decided to work at my internship just to
get paid. I did it because I enjoyed working with the technology and helping others with it. In
many occasions, I always felt extremely happy and excited to show up to work. Once I began to
feel this every single time before I showed up to work I knew I had found my passion and my
true happiness. I felt contentment at work, although I am intern I still find myself full of
happiness when I am there. Money is not the reason for my happiness, on the other hand,
working on something I am passionate about is. Money is a physical object that will provide you
with temporary pleasure and not true happiness. In Laozi's book "The Tao Te Ching" he claims
"if your happiness depends on money, you will never be happy with yourself” (14). According to
Laozi, I am happy at work due to me not being dependent on money. My happiness at work had
nothing to do with how much money I was getting paid, on the other hand, I sought happiness in
helping others. Laozi also touches the topic of having harmony with others will benefit yourself
and your happiness. Harmonizing with others will bring you the happiness you might be seeking.
In a workplace environment, it can be hard to find happiness unless you are in harmony with
others and you find happiness in what it is you are doing. When I arrive at work I always looked
forward to helping others, never about how much I will get paid that day. My experiences of
happiness in different spaces change according to what I find myself doing, and whether I enjoy
it or not. I concluded that when I found myself doing anything that had to do with technology I
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would always be enjoying it and be full of elation no matter the environment I am in or the
people I am surrounded by. In both environments, I found myself I was surrounded by people
that I might have disliked, but I did not allow it to get in the way of me misunderstanding my
happiness and unhappiness. Writers like Laozi and Epictetus argue that true happiness can be
difficult to achieve, but to find it you need to look at yourself and your behavior. Your
interactions with others can influence your perception of happiness. Determining the
environment, I was the unhappiest with was difficult since I often found myself surrounded by
people I enjoyed being with. The place my happiness changed was in my dorm due to me living
by myself.
While being in my dorm I feel out of place and unhappy because I do not have the
friendship and bond I expected to have with my roommates. Living away from home for the first
time is a difficult thing, this can cause many people to feel homesick and unhappy. Before I
moved to college I always saw my family as my passion because I had them so close to me I was
always reminded that they were the reason why I was working so hard for. Although I am still
motivated to do well being away from my family makes me feel unhappy and being in my dorm
happiness was different in my dorm is that I started off on the wrong foot with my roommates.
This caused miscommunication between us and lead to me feel unhappy in my dorm. I am more
active and happy at work while in my dorm I feel uncomfortable, timid and find myself unhappy.
My lack of passion for building a better friendship with my roommates is the reason why I
cannot feel contentment in my dorm. The lack of harmony I had with my peers was a major
factor in my unhappiness in my dorm. There were many things that determined my unhappiness
in this environment. My performance changed in these spaces due to the people I found myself
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surrounded by. At work, I was surrounded by people who were also passionate about technology
and helping others. During the four years, I had been working for the IT department at my old
High school, I built friendships and bonds that motivated me to seek my passion for technology.
Thanks to these bonds I always enjoyed working there and always look forward to showing up to
work.
After analyzing my actions in these environments, I determined that I would always find
happiness in spaces that I find myself doing things I am passionate about and enjoy. My idea of
happiness in school changed throughout the semester. I noticed that I will remain unhappy and
miserable being away from home in my dorm until I find a passion that will lead me to success
in my dorm. Authors like Laozi argue that happiness and self-content can be achieved once you
find your motive in life. Also making bonds with people on campus who are passionate about the
same things I am will help me affiliate my passion with happiness. In Epictetus book "The
Handbook of Epictetus" he argues that "so, remember, if you think things are naturally enslaved
are free or that things not your own are your own, you will be thwarted, miserable, and upset,
and will blame both gods and men” (88). Therefore, you shall find happiness once you have
freed yourself from negative thoughts. I realized that if I continue to think that I cannot find
happiness in my new home, I will be miserable all throughout my time in college. Becoming a
happier person will be determined by the people I surround myself with and the bonds that I
acquire. I would have never taught about stopping and thinking about my happiness in different
spaces until this assignment. In the various places I was I always acted naturally and did
comprehend what I value the most in my life. After analyzing Laozi’s and Epictetus statements I
could narrow down what are the places I had positive experiences of happiness and vice versa.
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My ideas of happiness changed, I had always thought about happiness as anything materialistic.
This did not seem to be the case for me, I narrowed down many of the things that I thought
brought me happiness and determined that the people I was around influenced my ideas of
happiness.
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Works Cited