Posted on by Phil

My Learnings from The Book of Joy

This past summer a good friend of mine bought me a copy of “The Book of Joy.”  In the last year I’d been getting into meditation/spirituality, and his wife had loved it.

While the book isn’t very long, it did take me a long time to read it for the simple reason that there is SO MUCH wisdom sprinkled throughout.   For those that don’t know, this book is basically a summary of a week of conversation between the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu.  It outlines many of their core philosophies.

There are a ton of great tidbits in this book for anyone with an open mind, and I highly suggest you go buy it if you’re at all curious.

I knew it’d be a worthwhile exercise for my own self to codify some (I can’t stress ‘some’ enough – this book is full of interesting and useful wisdom) of the key lessons that I took away, and thought “why not write them up on that blog I never post to!”

So, here are a few of the lessons I took away:

  • “The purpose of life is to find happiness” – The Dalai Lama says this in the opening part of the week, and I completely agree.  Of course, finding and pursuing happiness are quite different and will lead to divergent outcomes.  As is mentioned later in the book, happiness is a byproduct of generosity, compassion, self love, and a host of other worthy pursuits.  Pursuing it directly usually ends in distraction and a focus on things like fast cars or big boats.
  • Compassion = Happiness – Do you ever have one of those days where you strike up a genuine conversation with a stranger, or get to help out someone in need?  As the book says “If you develop a strong sense of concern for the well-being of others, this will make you happy in the morning, even before coffee.”  This is very true, and you can lean test it by smiling and saying hello to each person you meet with today – I guarantee you’ll notice the change in yourself.  Of course, you can supercharge your effort through generosity.
  • A grateful mind breeds happiness – Having a bad day?  Think of something you’re truly grateful for and focus on it.  Maybe it’s as trivial as how warm your coffee is, or maybe it’s something as important as your health.  Focusing on things we’re grateful for is transformative, and a worthwhile daily practice.
  • We’re all people – This is very related to the compassion point, but I wanted to write down a key consideration made throughout the book around the negative side of personal interactions.  Ever have a boss that is horrible, or have a run in with a bully?  Realistically, these people are critical because they see the world as critical, or aggressive because they are fragile.  Forgiveness and empathy, even to people who “don’t deserve it” leads to happiness.  Side note: I’ll admit it, I can hold grudges…but letting them go feels so much better than ruminating (with the exception of when I’m trying to beat a 3 mile time and need some extra adrenaline for that final push).
  • Stress and hardship are just a part of life – According to the book, stress is actually key to our development in utero (disclaimer:  I’m no doctor).  We can all agree that it’d be crazy not to recognize the amazing role that hardship and failure play in the evolution of us as individuals.  So, try to see the bright side of your next challenge, and realize that every human on earth has to go through something similar in their lives (easier said that done!).  Apparently, the first noble truth of Buddhism is that life is full of suffering.  If you need some extra inspiration here, I highly recommend Viktor Frankel’s Man’s Search for Meaning.
  • It ain’t all fluff  – A lot of the above sounds like something a non analytical thinker would believe in, or what you may simply learn at Kindergarten (and what’s wrong with that???).  However, nothing could be further from the truth.  Following the teachings laid out in this book will actually make you happier, allow you to think clearer, and live a more “productive” life.  Beyond my own experience,  you can see that these teachings align with how humans came to be through the evolution of our species.  For example, building meaningful relationships with others is a sure fire way to be happy, which makes sense as that’s how we used to (and still do) get stuff done in society.  In fact, the book is sprinkled with actual scientific studies that detail things like lowered hypertension in people who gave away money…just in case you’re a skeptic and need some data along with the wise words 🙂

One fun thought experiment is to think about the various things future generations will know as truth that we can’t see right now.  For example, we now look back at history and think “how could they not know smoking was bad for them?” or “how could anyone not see the CDO market was a house of cards that posed a major systemic risk to the economy?”  Meditation is a great way to think more clearly about the question of what we just aren’t understanding now…and, perhaps its future adoption will be another answer to this thought experiment.

8,699 Replies to “My Learnings from The Book of Joy”

  1. I am really impressed with your writing skills as well as with
    the layout on your weblog. Is this a paid theme or did you customize it yourself?

    Either way keep up the excellent quality writing,
    it’s rare to see a nice blog like this one these days.

  2. My partner and I stumbled over here from a different web page and thought I might as well check things out.

    I like what I see so i am just following you.

    Look forward to finding out about your web page yet again.

  3. I have read a few excellent stuff here. Certainly worth bookmarking for revisiting.

    I surprise how much effort you place to create one
    of these wonderful informative website.

  4. I all the time used to read paragraph in news papers but now
    as I am a user of web thus from now I am using net for articles
    or reviews, thanks to web.

  7. Hi, I do believe this is a great website. I stumbledupon it 😉 I may return yet again since I bookmarked it.
    Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue
    to guide others.

  9. Hi there, just became aware of your blog through Google,
    and found that it is truly informative. I am gonna watch out for
    brussels. I will be grateful if you continue this in future.
    Many people will be benefited from your writing.
    Cheers!

  10. This is really interesting, You are a very skilled blogger.
    I’ve joined your rss feed and stay up for in search of more of your
    excellent post. Additionally, I’ve shared your web
    site in my social networks

  12. It’s perfect time to make some plans for the long run and
    it’s time to be happy. I’ve learn this put up and if I may
    just I desire to counsel you some attention-grabbing
    things or advice. Maybe you could write next
    articles relating to this article. I wish to learn even more
    issues approximately it!

  13. I wanted to thank you for this very good read!! I absolutely loved
    every bit of it. I have you bookmarked to check out new things
    you post…

  15. My brother suggested I might like this blog.
    He was totally right. This post truly made my day. You can not imagine simply how much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!

  18. I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good.
    I don’t know who you are but certainly you’re going to a famous blogger if you aren’t already 😉 Cheers!

  20. Very nice post. I simply stumbled upon your blog and wished to
    mention that I have really loved browsing your blog
    posts. After all I’ll be subscribing on your feed and I hope you write once more very soon!

  21. hey there and thank you for your information – I have definitely
    picked up something new from right here. I did however expertise a few technical issues using this site,
    as I experienced to reload the site many times previous to
    I could get it to load correctly. I had been wondering if your web host is OK?
    Not that I’m complaining, but slow loading instances times will often affect your placement in google and could damage your quality score if ads and marketing with Adwords.
    Well I am adding this RSS to my e-mail and can look out for much more of your respective intriguing content.

    Make sure you update this again very soon.

  23. I think that is among the such a lot significant information for me.
    And i am happy studying your article. But wanna observation on some general issues,
    The web site taste is wonderful, the articles is truly nice :
    D. Just right task, cheers

  27. It is appropriate time to make some plans for the future and
    it is time to be happy. I’ve read this post and if I could I wish to
    suggest you few interesting things or suggestions. Maybe you can write next articles referring to this article.
    I wish to read more things about it!

  28. Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let you know a few of the pictures aren’t loading properly.

    I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue.
    I’ve tried it in two different web browsers and both show the same outcome.

  30. My partner and I stumbled over here different web address and thought I might as well check things out.
    I like what I see so now i am following you.
    Look forward to exploring your web page repeatedly.

  31. Hi, I do believe this is a great site. I stumbledupon it 😉
    I will return once again since i have saved as a favorite it.
    Money and freedom is the greatest way to change, may you be rich and continue to guide others.

  32. really interesting review. Furthermore visit that site to teach yourself agen slot deposit pulsa.
    Of which extraordinary web-site has received identity coming from slot deposit pulsa wagering men and women in Dalam negeri.
    Generally there are lots of appealing promos by way of chance you join appears to fall
    apart.

  34. I don’t know if it’s just me or if perhaps everyone
    else experiencing problems with your blog.
    It appears like some of the written text within your content are running off the
    screen. Can somebody else please provide feedback and let me know if this
    is happening to them too? This might be a issue with my web browser because I’ve had this happen before.
    Appreciate it

  35. My coder is trying to persuade me to move to
    .net from PHP. I have always disliked the idea because of the expenses.

    But he’s tryiong none the less. I’ve been using Movable-type on a
    number of websites for about a year and am worried about switching to another platform.

    I have heard very good things about blogengine.net.
    Is there a way I can import all my wordpress posts into it?
    Any help would be really appreciated!

  37. Hello my friend! I want to say that this article is awesome,
    nice written and include approximately all important infos.
    I would like to look more posts like this .

  38. Have you ever thought about publishing an ebook or guest authoring on other
    sites? I have a blog centered on the same subjects
    you discuss and would love to have you share some stories/information.
    I know my viewers would value your work. If you are even remotely interested, feel free
    to send me an e mail.

  42. Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your weblog and wished to say that I’ve truly enjoyed surfing around
    your blog posts. After all I’ll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again soon!

  43. This is really attention-grabbing, You are an excessively skilled blogger.
    I have joined your rss feed and look ahead to in quest of extra of your wonderful post.
    Additionally, I’ve shared your web site in my social networks

  44. Simply want to say your article is as surprising.

    The clarity to your post is just excellent and i could suppose you are knowledgeable on this subject.
    Well along with your permission let me to take hold of your RSS feed to stay up to date with drawing close post.

    Thank you 1,000,000 and please carry on the gratifying work.

  48. Hello just wanted to give you a brief heads
    up and let you know a few of the images aren’t loading properly.
    I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different web browsers
    and both show the same outcome.

Comments are closed.