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The secret to true happiness is what you "choose" to make it, not what it "should" be.
By Gloria Arenson — Written on Jun 15, 2015
I should get my car washed. I should pay my bills. I should eat less. I shouldn't sleep so late on the weekend.
We fill our lives with "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts." Shoulds keep us on the straight and narrow path to goodness, but do they send us on the path to happiness?
What are "shoulds" and where did they come from? Of course, we can trace them back to the original holy set — the Ten Commandments — but I'm guessing that "shoulds" arose even before that.
We create a should when a group of people agree on how the world is or might be, but this may differ from culture to culture and century to century. Democrats have different "shoulds" about the world than Republicans.
Believers and non-believers differ about the "shoulds" that label us good or bad. The "shoulds" of your family and friends may diametrically oppose those of your neighbor. Americans have different expectations than Chinese or Ugandan people about what it takes to become a good or productive person.
"Shoulds" may lead to procrastination. Putting things off is often the result of unconsciously rebelling against or avoiding an unpleasant should. This is because the outside inflicts "shoulds" on us.
From our earliest years, we're told what a good boy or girl should or shouldn't do to gain approval from a parent, teacher, family, community, religion, and the world.
We are not given opportunities to challenge these instructions. When we do, we may end up going our own way and marching to our own drummer, but may also carry a load of guilt or shame about breaking away from what's expected.
Who says I should wash my car, pay my bills, or eat less junk food? You may say you do, but where did the original rule come from and who imposed it on you? Take a moment to think about some of the things you are dragging your feet about doing right now. Pick one.
Pretend you are standing in front of your local ATM about to make a withdrawal. This time, you are going to withdraw some information. Pretend you are typing in this question instead of the amount of money: How young was I when I decided I'd be a bad person if I didn't ___? (Fill in the thing you are putting off)
Take a deep breath and as you let it out, a number will pop into your head.
As you identify your age you may automatically know who told you it was wrong or bad. If not, do the ATM routine, again asking for that information. Remember what was happening back then and how you felt when you accepted that command.
Take a moment to acknowledge all the guilt or shame you have felt throughout your life and each time you resisted. How often have you struggled with this and other "shoulds" handed down from generation to generation?
Please don't think I am telling you to drop all "shoulds" and rebel against everything; the result would create chaos and harm. Children need some rules to help them conform to the expectations of their culture and to keep them safe. Yet, once we are grown-ups we assess these directives and decide which ones fit our beliefs and lifestyle, and which don't.
Grown-ups can choose which decrees they want to adhere to.
Try this: Go back to the command you chose above. Say out loud to yourself, "I should do my laundry." How do you feel? Is there tension in your stomach or throat? Do you feel ashamed of yourself for being lazy?
Think about this for a moment. Do you want to do your laundry? If you don't then are you willing to deal with the consequences? After all, you are an adult now and responsible for your actions. Make a decision and say either, "I choose to do my laundry," or "I choose to not do my laundry." Does that feel different when you say it out loud?
Most people find that when they trade in their "shoulds" for choose to or choose not to, they get rid of a load of guilt and shame. See if you can eliminate the words "should," "shouldn't," "must," and "have" to from your life this week and notice what happens.
Take advantage of a FREE 15 minute phone consult with Gloria to talk more about getting rid of your "Shoulds." Be sure to download her FREE eBook, Creating Happiness.
