Never Adapt To Anything That Makes You Happy
We always do it sometimes. We adapt to something that doesn’t make us happy. Like someone who cramms himself into a shoe because he thinks it’s his size, but very soon finds out he can’t walk, run let alone escape… Happiness shouldn’t hurt, so it shouldn’t squeeze, rub or suffocate, but rather it should let us to be free, light, and rulers of our own way.
A soap company that marketed its products in work communities many years ago released a successful product to the market with a special message. Engraved on the piece of soap was the phrase “Happiness is urgency.”
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi emphasizes the idea that focusing on the task with our body and soul can bring us happiness. That task should be added to this equation, whether it meant something to us or nothing. In fact, many employees would view that slogan of a bar of soap with sad irony because not everyone was happy at the job they did. While it rewards them financially, it does not provide them with mental well-being.
We could say with almost certainty that many of us are forcibly adapting to our daily routines while being aware that they do not make us happy. Like wearing shoes of the same brand, even if they cause us blisters. It’s like being on a ferris wheel. A ferris wheel that never stops spinning. The exciting and perfect world below and life continue to be unattainable and joyful, while we cautiously stick to our routines.
We adapt to feel safe
When we were kids, our parents tied our shoelaces with a double knot so they wouldn’t open, causing us to stumble and fall. They wrap us in blankets and blankets carefully. They closed the zippers of our jackets all the way up to keep us warm, cared for and secure.
All that physical pressure was uncomfortable many times, but we felt safe. As we get older and take on adult responsibilities, that need for a sense of security stays with us. However, that undefined tendency to seek refuge continues and our conscience often leads directly to our behavior.
As strange as it may seem, the simplest way to demonstrate this need is with our brains. The brain doesn’t like change, risk, and even less threats. The brain whispers to us to “adapt even if we are not happy because security ensures survival.” However, we should keep in mind that adaptation does not always go hand in hand with happiness. Adaptation often does not occur due to other reasons.
There are those who stay in a relationship even when there is no more love. Without a regular partner, there is less happiness. For some, the most important thing is to escape loneliness, and to do so they do not hesitate to adapt to a heart that does not adapt to their own.
The same thing happens in a secular way. Many people choose to keep their heads down. Someone who is sober, manageable, someone who belittles their skills and training when preparing a job application because they know it is the only way to adapt to the company hierarchy.
It’s as if a new slogan is engraved in our brains, as in the aforementioned piece of soap: “Adapt or die, give up to survive.”
Is it really worth it to die unhappy?
