I’m sitting in deep, dark S.London and there’s a sky full of nothing but clouds.
I know there are people around the world waking up to bleached beaches and aquamarine tides, blazing suns and various dream lives. And do you know, I’m happy for them.
Obviously at some point those people have made a decision to be there – or at least not to be anywhere else – doing whatever it is they do on beaches on Monday mornings. So good luck to them all.
Why? Well, something becoming more and more obvious is that our decisions are be integral to our happiness.
Recently, the football manager Jose Mourinho returned to Chelsea FC for a second stint as “the happy one”. Sticking with football, the former Arsenal player Francesc Fabregas has been linked with a return to London. For now he seems against it. After all, he’s living his dream in Barcelona.
Yesterday Jimmy Carr, Richard Branson, Michael McIntyre, Boris Johnson, Eddie Redmayne and Jonathan Ross all graced the court at the Queen’s tennis tournament. They were able to play alongside Andy Murray and Tim Henman, which isn’t exactly the worst thing to do on a Sunday.
Surprisingly, Mayor Johnson was pretty decent with his 19th century style racket. But less surprising was that all had made a decision to be there. For a very good cause indeed, but also for their own and others’ happiness.
These are perhaps detached examples of the potential results of our own decisions. But making small decisions to increase happiness – or just making one decision to allow yourself to be happy – can be life-changing.
For my part, it’s tied largely to my work.
It’s small things really:
- I woke up this morning when I was ready to.
- I don’t tend to use an alarm these days if I don’t have to, allowing my body it’s natural ability of deciding how much sleep it needs.
- I suppose as well I could be anywhere in the world doing what I do, but I’m currently choosing to be here.
Such small decisions are linked to something bigger. A year and a half ago I left a full-time role having spent years of hard work establishing myself. What I have done since is decided not to return to such a role. And having made that decision is making me a better person.
Not only do I have the option to be a little flexible with my work, but it means that I can keep exploring new ideas. It means I don’t dread fitting my lengthy frame on public transport every morning. And it also means I don’t consider the start of the week a start to five days of torturous grind.
I’m not living a perfect life on a beach just yet, this is true. It might be I’ll never make a decision to do so. But at least for the moment I can look forward to a new week with optimism and a sense of open-ended discovery.
What’s more, as a bonus of allowing myself to make my own decisions, I really don’t mind Mondays.
