In Search of Joy

As summer winds down, we’re taking a little detour today on our road trip for social and environmental impact.  We’re going…in search of joy.

Earlier this year, when the days were short and the nights were long, my wife and I both echoed a similar sentiment over dinner one evening: a complete lack of joy in our lives.

That was a downer of a discussion.  I suspect, coming out of the pandemic with a barrage of ongoing negative news (economic, war, climate), it’s likely not a sensitivity we alone share.

I decided to try and do something about it, which entailed a lot of thought about the subject.

First, I needed a baseline, so a definition seemed in order.  Merriam-Webster’s has three primary definitions:

1 : the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires : delight

2 : a state of happiness or felicity : bliss

3 : a source or cause of delight

Number 1 didn’t seem like a good yardstick for me.  Felicity of Number 2 – now there’s a word not in my working vocabulary: Something that causes happiness.  I thought this had potential as my definition.

Taking in these definitions caused me to examine my own expectations of joy.  I suspected mine cleaved more closely to an unrealistic state of euphoria, the turning of the joy knob up to 11. So, I decided to focus on the felicitous “somethings” that cause me happiness and to redefine my own personal definition of happiness around a sense of well-being with a dose of wonder.

The next step: Paying attention and recognizing these moments and appreciating them as joy. 

Turns out, there are many felicitous somethings in my life.  Here are a few:

• Petrichor, that intoxicating smell of the first rain after a long dry spell.
• Like Freddie Mercury sang, “Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see.”  Clouds are an endless source of fascination that get me every time. Turns out, there's an appreciation society for clouds that keeps me in the fluffy stuff on a daily basis.
• This cover of Debussy’s Claire de Lune by Don Couto, which somehow accomplishes the feat of making me feel like I’m being born, like I’m living, and like I’m dying – all at the same time.
• Derivative joy, that of watching my dogs roll joyously in the grass.
• Listening to a podcast telling the story of research indicating that sperm whales have a phonetic alphabet, and that the clicks of their codas could actually be music rather than language.  Pure magic. 
• Weeding the garden (Not so much really – just kidding – though writing that bit of mischievous misdirection gave me a small dose of joy. 😉)
• Helping someone. (Speaking of which:  If you need help with anything – anything – please let me know.)
• Grandkids – duh.

In compiling that list, which is just a partial one – I tried to do some editorial culling to respect your attention span for my indulgences – I notice how many of these transitory joys are generated by nature.  I’m fortunate to live on a farm and to live in a place – Idaho – where nature is such a central part of our existence.

Each day I now make it a practice to notice and acknowledge moments of joy.  This new perspective has been a game changer that’s hard to measure or articulate.  Perhaps it’s as simple as giving me a sense of gratitude for being alive.

And now I’m curious.  How about you? Where are you on the joy spectrum these days, and what are some things that bring you joy?

Godspeed, friends.

Russ

P.S. We'll be taking a break for Labor Day so the next Godspeed will arrive in your inbox on September 10.

💬 Quote of the Week

“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was a joy.” Rabindranath Tagore, Indian poet, writer, artist, philosopher, and social reformer

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” Often attributed to Teddy Roosevelt, though ascribed to many.

💥 Quick Hits

• That's a DGI, Paul – Responding to last week's story on rebranding ESG and DEI, Godspeed reader and B1G1 Co-founder Paul Dunn relayed, "I often write that we can eliminate the whole issue(s) with ESG by simply ‘re-branding’ the acronym to Embed Social Good." Well, that's a DGI, Paul (Damn Good Idea). 

• On the same track – Godspeed reader and Public Inc. CEO Phil Haid let us know he just published a similar piece (on ESG and DEI) in Fast Company, Corporate Sustainability is Maturing, Not Disappearing. Worth a read!

• How to strengthen your happiness muscle – Turns out, you can exercise your happiness muscle. All it takes is an intentional workout to seek positive emotions and boost your joy.

⚠️ Since We're Taking a Detour...

Anyone else a fan of Aimee Mann? One of the gifts of age is that you are exposed to the arcs of an artist's career, in real time. Such is the case with Aimee, as two live performances of the same song, Voices Carry, illustrate. One from her New Wave days as a 26-year old in 1986 with Til Tuesday, and another from 2017, performed with Oscar nominations, Grammy nominations, and three more decades of life experience as a solo artist under her belt.

Find the Most Meaningful Work of Your Career

Our partner One Work has you covered with meaningful work that goes beyond a paycheck, a cubicle, or a weekly team Zoom call. You'll find purposeful jobs like those below, along with many more at the One Work job board.

• Ben & Jerry's - Vermont + Social and Environmental Justice + ice cream? You'd better hurry and apply for this one before I beat you to it! 😉 U.S. Digital Marketing Manager, South Burlington, VT.

• Great Minds - Orient your stellar mind toward greatness at this builder of high-quality curricula in mathematics, English language arts, science, and more. Senior Product Manager, Humanities, REMOTE.

• Grand Central Bakery - You can bake bread, but you can't cook the numbers at this pioneering artisan bakery in the Great Pacific Northwest. It's a B Corp, too. Accounting Associate, Seattle, WA.

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