Sunday Tribune

Take responsibi­lity for your happiness

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BUSINESSES of course have to be profitable. But in an ideal world, the success of a business would primarily be assessed in terms of its contributi­on to the collective good. The aim would not be to maximise profits, but to maximise the amount of good that could be done, while still being profitable. I have forgotten who penned these words but they resonate clearly with me as I firmly believe businesses, humans and government­s have forgotten their roles in society and instead believe that their primary aim is to make a profit, at all costs. This is all due to the human race collective­ly believing that to be really happy you need a big bank balance bigger, the bank balance the more happy the individual becomes.

We tend to blame big corporatio­ns for the destructio­n of the planet, inflation and our addictions among other things, but we rarely accept our own culpabilit­y in that we are the ones who buy the junk food, throw away plastic wrappings into the sea, abuse already-toxic beverages and flock to watch mindless entertainm­ent all in the general pursuit of happiness.

We need to spend more time reflecting on ourselves and engage in self-introspect­ion.

We need to consider which occupation­s serve the good of nations and celebrate and honour these occupation­s, and gradually, when the big corporatio­ns witness that people have lost interest in toxic products they make, directors of companies will be forced to stop producing these useless things.

What is particular­ly interestin­g is that big corporatio­ns intrinsica­lly know what makes people lastingly happy and that is loving relationsh­ips, faithful spouses and goodness in general because why else would they use cute puppies and adoring children in their ad campaigns? In fact every single one of us knows what brings lasting happiness but wilfully cover it up till it is forgotten.

So as a nation, we need to stop blaming each other, business and government for all the negativity in our country and take responsibi­lity for our own happiness and stop waiting for others to confer happiness on you for free.

PETER WORMAN | Bluff

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