Enjoyment

To obtain clarity in our lives, we must not only define success but define the words we use to describe it. Definitions vary among individuals, but it can always be described as your aim in life. I aim to enjoy life and to love people.

Enjoyment is an all-encompassing word. It includes pleasurable feelings including those of instant and delayed gratification. It is enjoyable to bite into a delicious brownie, but it is also enjoyable to gain strength after a difficult workout.

Neither is inherently good or bad–they simply offer different types of satisfaction and tradeoffs: The sugar high of the brownie may feel great at the moment, but could make you crash later on. The strength gained after a workout may be rewarding, but it may also never come. We shouldn’t live entirely for momentary pleasures, but we shouldn’t live in constant pursuit of future pleasures either. Finding the right balance is a factor in optimal enjoyment.

Enjoyment, however, does not just encompass pleasurable feelings, it includes virtuous actions. It is enjoyable to live a life that is in alignment with true nature, one in which your actions reconcile with your words. It may often feel good to live this way, but feelings are not a factor here–there is a deeper sense of harmony in a life of integrity. It is enjoyable to lead a life true to oneself.

Enjoyment is the process of finding joy in something. Joy can come from pleasure but it can also come from harmony.

I aim to enjoy life as much as possible, but that is obviously a more complicated endeavor than it seems. I ask myself: what is the optimal balance between gratification now and later? Do my actions align with my words? Do I really enjoy the things I say I do? Or do I do the things I do because I wish I enjoyed them? The answers are often unclear, buried beneath false desires. Even when discovered, the work is not done. It takes intention to enjoy life–to stay true to what you enjoy without getting crossed in the paths of others.

Enjoyment, however, is merely a metric of personal welfare. It should be a guiding light in our lives, but we should keep a keen eye on the greater good. Follow your joy, but follow others' joy too. Serve others without expectation of reciprocation. This unconditional service of others is called love.

To me, success does not just mean to enjoy your own life, it also means to encourage others to enjoy their lives. It can be tremendously rewarding to love others but true love is purely altruistic. Intention matters. Success is not only to enjoy life, but to love others.