Sorry - I’m just going to admit right up front that the headline is a bait & switch! I’m not going to help you double your income. I do have a way for you to increase your happiness though – stay connected to your peeps!
I am currently reading a book called Reset – Living a Grace Paced Life in a Burnout Culture by David Murray. In his book, he goes through ways to structure your life and develop patterns that protect you from burnout.
Among his recommendations are suggestions to keep priority on your relationship with God, your spouse, your children and your friends. He says that marital happiness is far more important than anything in determining personal well-being. I can attest to that! If my marriage isn’t happy and peaceful, it affects my entire outlook. If my marriage is doing well and I stay well connected to Jen, other challenges don’t seem so insurmountable. His recommendation to give priority to our relationships with God and our spouse makes sense.
But the part I found the most interesting is an opinion article the author refers to. It was written by a guy named David Brooks in the New York Times back in 2010. It’s called The Sandra Bullock Trade. Within a month, Sandra Bullock won an Academy Award for best actress and also learned that her husband had been unfaithful to her. So the question David Brooks was asking is, “Would you take this deal? Would you exchange a tremendous professional triumph for a severe personal blow?”
Throughout the article he talks about marital happiness. But the other part that was interesting to me was this comment: “According to one study, joining a group that meets even just once a month produces the same happiness gain as doubling your income.” Hence, the reason for the title of this blog post.
It hits home right now, doesn’t it? It seems like we’re all craving human contact; missing our work and social interactions amidst these days of self-quarantine. What are you doing to stay connected? Have you figured out how to use technology to meet virtually with your friends or Life Group? Have you gone back to the old-fashioned idea of making a phone call to a buddy just to catch up? If not, why? What’s stopping you?
Want to be happy? Stay connected – to God and to your friends!