Happiness and Orville WrightEveryone wants happiness.  Some have it, some see it as elusive – they are always chasing it. Perhaps part of the reason is that they don’t have a clear picture of what it is. Today’s quotation gives a definition and an example. . . perhaps from an unexpected source.

Enjoy.

“Will and I could hardly wait for the morning to come to get at something that interested us. That’s happiness.”
Orville Wright, inventor and aviation pioneer

Questions to Ponder

  • What interests you?
  • How are interest and happiness connected for you?
  • How do you define happiness?

Action Steps

  1. If you don’t have a clear personal definition of happiness, create one.
  2. Take specific actions to be happier today.
  3. Make happiness a priority.
  4. Choose to be happy!

My Thoughts

When we are happy, we are healthier, less stressed, more productive – a short list of reasons why we all want more happiness. While I love today’s quotation and it points to an important point, it also obscures an even bigger one.  In the end, happiness is a choice. Abe Lincoln wrote famously, “We are all about as happy as we make up our minds to be.”

Orville is right, and so is Abe.  And in the end, if you want to more happiness in your life, practice the last two action steps above, every day.  Make happiness a priority, and the best way to do that is to choose happiness.

Your thoughts? Please share them as a comment.

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Kevin Eikenberry is a recognized world expert on leadership development and learning and is the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. He has spent over 30 years helping organizations across North America, and leaders from around the world, on leadership, learning, teams and teamwork, communication and more.

Twice he has been named by Inc.com as one of the Top 100 Leadership and Management Experts in the World and 100 Great Leadership Speakers for Your Next Conference. The American Management Association named him a “Leaders to Watch” and he has been twice named as one of the World's Top 30 Leadership Professionals by Global Gurus. Top Sales World has named him a Top Sales & Marketing Influencer several times, and his blog has been named on many “best of” lists. LeadersHum has named him one of the 200 Biggest Voices in Leadership in 2023.

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  1. Kevin,
    I think that happiness is like popularity. It is an outcome not a direct goal. I think happiness comes from building and sustaining good relationships and doing the best you can at the goals you want to accomplish and becoming grateful for all that you have.
    Have a wonderful fathers’ day.
    Chris

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