Melaleuca began its mission of enhancing lives almost 25 years ago. We wrote it down prior to opening our doors so that we would never forget it. It has never changed. Simply stated, it is “To enhance the lives of those we touch by helping people reach their goals.SM” That mission has become part of the fabric of every piece of our business model. For 25 years we have strived to make people’s lives better by helping them achieve their dreams. During that time I’ve learned a great deal about people’s dreams. I’ve learned that different people have different dreams and different goals. From the beginning it became clear that it is not for us to decide what a person’s dream should be. Our job is simply to try to help people make their dreams come true.
Often, people tell us about financial goals and they tell us of goals for better health. I love to hear the stories of how people have used Melaleuca to change their lives. Over the years I’ve heard thousands of stories of improved health and improved financial situations. I have heard it said by many people that Melaleuca has changed their lives. Of course, that is not true. But it is true that thousands of people have used Melaleuca to change their own lives.
I’ve met many people over the years who had dreams when they were young about the kind of life they were going to lead, the kind of people they were going to be, and the kind of impact they were going to have on the world. So often, as life hits them in the face, people lose sight of those youthful dreams. They give up on them and eventually forget them. They become resigned to living a mediocre life, just trying to get by. In other cases people change their goals by intent. As they mature, they realize the goals that they had in their youth were not goals that would bring them happiness. As they gain a better understanding of self-fulfillment they establish goals with greater substance and greater meaning than they had when they were young. It is great to be around people like this. Their lives have purpose. They are on a mission. And they appear to be much happier than those who have simply given up on their goals.
Even though one person’s lifelong goals can be entirely different than another person’s, I find that everyone has one goal in common. That is the desire to be happy. That’s a goal that we seem to all have in common. We all want to be happy. Unfortunately, many people go through their entire lives without ever finding happiness. That’s probably because they are looking in the wrong place for it. I’d like to focus this month’s message on the topic of happiness since it is a goal that appears to be common to every living human being.
I think it is worthwhile to note that there are many happy people in the world who do not have much in the way of worldly possessions. It does not take riches to find happiness. Sometimes I worry that the tremendous success that people are having in their Melaleuca business may lead them in the wrong direction in their search for happiness. Melaleuca appears to be, without question, the absolutely best vehicle for average people to get ahead in life financially. But let’s remember that prosperity, in and of itself, will not bring happiness. I am convinced that prosperity will enhance our lives only if we use it as a resource in the areas that truly bring fulfillment in our lives.
Unfortunately, I suspect that those who achieve a consistent state of happiness are very rare. Indeed, many people seem to be in a constant state of unhappiness. We are tempted to ask ourselves, “How can people be so consistently unhappy when their goal is to be happy?” I suspect that it is because people often look for happiness in the wrong places. Too seldom do we take a step back and look deep down inside ourselves to find what would really make us happy in our lives. Too often we get caught up in the rat race of keeping up with the Joneses, of seeking riches, a sexier partner, worldly possessions, or other things that society tells us would make us happy. We are bombarded with messages from our television sets, the Internet, magazines, and society as a whole that if we just had a new boat, a larger home, or a Mercedes-Benz, or the latest iPod, then we would be happy. Or, we tell ourselves that if we had that big screen TV, or a better job, or a better boss, a sexier body or a better spouse—then we would be happy.
In our minds we know better. We know that having stuff or expanding our list of possessions will not actually bring us happiness. But something continues to drive us forward towards seeking happiness in areas where we know, deep down inside, we will never find it. Unfortunately, the result is that many people never do find true happiness. Even after they obtain the bigger home, the big-screen TV, or even the Mercedes-Benz, they find themselves no happier than they were before. That is because they are looking for happiness in the wrong places. It’s not that they don’t already know that. It’s just that they don’t force themselves to stop and take a look deep down inside themselves and ask themselves what’s really going on in their lives and face what it is going to take to change it.
Happiness has much more to do with what is going on inside of us than what is going on outside of us. Happiness has more to do with doing things than with having things. Most people find happiness in caring relationships, and in creating, building, and learning. Family relationships appear to be the most important, but other relationships are also important. Genuinely caring about someone else and having someone else care about us certainly plays a big role. Striving towards a goal and making progress towards achieving it adds to our happiness. It has been my observation that we were all meant to be creators. It seems that we are happier when we are doing something productive, something worthwhile. My good wife, Belinda, gains a great deal of enjoyment out of vacuuming and cleaning. It gives her a sense of accomplishment. We all feel good about ourselves when we are creating something that we can be proud of. We also gain a feeling of accomplishment when we reach out to help others. If our daily activities are only to help ourselves, we end up unfulfilled. If we love only ourselves, we will never experience the joy. The ability to reach out to others definitely has something to do with being happy.
I believe that a factor that is often overlooked in our search for happiness is the tremendous impact that our own moral compass has on our happiness. We all seem to have a moral compass—something inside of us that tells us what is morally “right” and what is morally “wrong.” It’s something that is inside each of us. When we live and act within the boundaries of our moral compass, we have peace of mind. When we find ourselves living or acting outside the boundaries of our moral compass, we don’t like ourselves. And when we don’t like ourselves we can never be happy. I suspect that this phenomenon has the greatest impact on our happiness. Liking who we are is, I believe, the most important aspect of finding happiness. I have often imagined a man standing in front of a mirror when he is 90 years old and saying to the person in the mirror, “I know you. I know everything about you. I know everything you’ve ever done. I know every thought you’ve ever had. I know every mistake you’ve ever made. And I know what you have done to try to correct those things. And therefore I like you. And I trust you!” I think that would be the ultimate test of our lives. If we can pass that test, we will have passed the test of life. We will like ourselves. And we will have lived a happy life.
I hope that as we build our Melaleuca business and seek prosperity, that we will remember where happiness really comes from. It is my hope that people will use the resources that they gain at Melaleuca in areas that truly will bring happiness. And that they will remember to build great relationships, and spend their time learning, creating, and building so that they can indeed find true fulfillment in their lives. We are dedicated to helping people reach their goals. Thank you for being part of this great endeavor.
Related posts:
- Best selling author of ‘Age Power’ Reflects on Melaleuca
- Prominent Leaders and Business Partners Congratulate Melaleuca on 25 Years of Ongoing Success!
- Mitt Romney on Melaleuca
- Melaleuca: A Steady Income for a Secure Retirement – An Acorn Becomes an Oak Tree
- Our Future Depends on Our Focus – Frank VanderSloot
- You Can’t Catch a Thing Unless You Keep Your Line in the Water – Frank VanderSloot
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Happiness is a mixture of what we achieved as a person and what is appreciated by others.