HAPPINESS-ORIENTED SOCIETY

A society is happiness-oriented to the extent that its various constituent components are:

1. Individuals

2. Families

3. Schools

4. Businesses

5. Religions

6. Politics

7. Economy

1. INDIVIDUALS ORIENTED TOWARDS HAPPINESS

What contributes most to achieving a society with the greatest possible well-being is having individuals focused on it, who meet 2 requirements:

They have a way of life aimed at their own quality of life.

They are also focused on the quality of life of others.

1.1. A WAY OF LIFE ORIENTED TOWARDS ONE’S OWN HAPPINESS

Life satisfaction and feeling good are primarily individual matters. Once we are adults, we are the ones who can most contribute to improving the above. This is possible by working on the 5 major pillars of quality of life: awareness (meditation), thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and needs. Read more…

A good way to learn this is through our books and courses, some of which are free.

1.2. ORIENTATION TOWARDS THE HAPPINESS OF OTHERS

As we work on all of the above and gradually develop the ability to be happy, we naturally also move towards the well-being of others. In fact, our individual quality of life is connected to that of others. To maximize our own, a mental focus on others is necessary. We will hardly achieve self-realization living in an ivory tower, for 3 reasons:

Egocentrism diminishes our satisfaction, while reducing our ego and needs and focusing more on others increases it.

Empathizing with others helps us put our problems into perspective.

The suffering of others affects most of us, especially when it is intense.

On the other hand, optimizing our own happiness only solves a tiny fraction of the total human beings and other sentient beings living on the planet, so to achieve a world oriented towards well-being, it is necessary that we also do something for others.

Each of us has the power to change the world. Citizens are usually the main driving force of a society, even more so than its public institutions. The civic person, oriented not only to themselves but also to others, is characterized by 4 attitudes:

Individual responsibility

Social responsibility

Culture of respect, cordiality, honesty, tolerance, peace, and openness

Moderate culture of work, effort, and excellence

Simplicity

1.2.1. INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY

Individual responsibility consists of not expecting others to cover our needs and provide for our well-being, both material and personal. On the contrary, it means being proactive and taking responsibility for achieving it through our work and effort, unless it is not possible, in which case it is appropriate to seek help from others and the State.

Individual responsibility is NOT:

Having a passive attitude, considering that other agents, such as the government, businesses, our partner, or whoever, are the ones who must solve our lives. Read more…

Focusing primarily on what others and the State can do for us.

Read DO NOT STEAL!: All who can, contribute your fair share to the State

Thinking too much about our rights or supposed rights and too little about our obligations and responsibilities.

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s not be selfish

Trying to get what we can from others or public administrations, taking advantage of them, or having parasitic attitudes. Read more…

Blaming other people, the State, or whoever for our situation when in reality it is partly due to our way of acting and thinking.

Demanding that others provide us with things they have not explicitly committed to and being indignant about it.

Individual responsibility IS:

Having an active attitude where we focus on what we can do to have the life we want. For example, if I lose my job, instead of complaining, I look for one. If I don’t find it, I consider starting a business. Read more…

Assuming our responsibilities.

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s seek a non-abusive balance between responsibility and solidarity

Being clear that what we achieve in life usually depends largely on us.

Recognizing that we can largely shape our future.

Personal responsibility benefits:

Firstly, ourselves, because if we have this attitude, we will tend to do what is necessary to achieve the situation we desire. It is fundamental to being as happy as possible, as this is not something that comes on its own, but requires cultivation.

Others, as it leads us not to take advantage of them, not to be an unnecessary burden, avoiding abusive attitudes that diminish the quality of life of other people. Read more…

1.2.2. SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Social responsibility includes altruism, solidarity, and the desire to contribute to a happier world. It goes a step beyond individual responsibility, as we not only focus on solving our own lives but also do something to improve the lives of others, especially the most abused and needy.

Social responsibility IS:

Not thinking so much about what others can do for us as about what we can do for them, especially for the most victimized and helpless.

Not focusing so much on what we can receive from the State and more on what we can contribute to the world, especially to the most downtrodden and defenseless.

Thinking not only about what we can do for ourselves and those in our care, but also about what we can contribute to society and the world as a whole, as well as to non-human sentient beings and the planet in general.

Read LET’S BUILD A BETTER WORLD!: Let’s give meaning to our lives by doing something for a better world

Sign the campaigns of the Institute of Well-being, spread its messages to build a happier world among as many people as possible and, even better, dedicate time and/or money.

Taking a stand against abuses of all kinds, as they are a cause of much suffering. This includes the defense of human and civil rights both in one’s own country and in others, of men and women, of adults and children, of heterosexuals and homosexuals. It includes any type of discriminated groups and individuals, as well as non-human animals.

LET’S AVOID HARM!: Let’s speak up clearly against injustice

To do this, you can participate in signature campaigns for certain causes, spread them on social media, protest against them, or collaborate with NGOs that fight against them, such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Animal Equality, or PETA.

Taking a stand against injustices and mistreatment also means openly showing our disapproval and even repulsion towards them in our environment, which discourages them from taking place. When abuses occur, from individual scale, such as bullying at school or mobbing in a company, to those with millions of victims, such as the Nazi genocide, people position themselves at different levels. There are those who support them, those who have some sympathy for them, those who justify them, those who relativize and sugarcoat them, those who remain indifferent, those who are against them but remain silent, those who more openly disapprove, and those who actively fight against them. The more people fall into the first categories, the more likely they are to occur, and vice versa.

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s not be accomplices or facilitators of injustice

Doing something to encourage sufficient funds to be dedicated to scientific research that maximizes happiness and minimizes suffering… access MAXIMUM HAPPINESS.

Helping those who cannot help themselves and encouraging those who can to do so, if they wish.

Collaborating in other causes that contribute to a happier world, such as helping against famine, disease, loneliness, promoting education, etc. This can be done through donations, volunteering, or even initiating one’s own planet improvement project.

1.2.3. RESPECT, CORDIALITY, TOLERANCE, HONESTY, PEACE, AND OPENNESS

Closely related to the above is the culture of respect, affection, and warmth towards others, regardless of their nationality, race, religion, sexual orientation, profession, social class, etc. Although it is not necessary to force it, because it is not obligatory to love someone who causes suffering to you or others. You can learn to develop these attitudes with our books and courses, all of which are free.

Closely related to the above are tolerance, peace, honesty, and openness.

Tolerance

It consists of letting everyone live their own way and do what they want, without judging them and accepting them, as long as they do not harm others, except in self-defense. It includes respect for the individual freedom of others. It could be summarized as live and let live. It constitutes one of the foundations of a happiness-oriented society, since it is more pleasant for the individual to live in a human environment where they are accepted as they are and as they wish to live. Read more at…

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s be tolerant

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s respect the freedom of others

Peace

A respectful and cordial person is usually peaceful, trying to resolve conflicts as much as possible through dialogue, with an assertive attitude, seeking win-win solutions (where everyone benefits). If it cannot be resolved this way, legal channels can generally be resorted to. The individual oriented to the well-being of others reserves the use of force only for extreme situations. The culture of peace saves much discomfort and suffering. Read more at

LET’S AVOID HARM!: Let’s defend ourselves and others

Honesty and justice

Integrity includes:

Honesty. Read more…

Goodness. Read more…

Reliability and fulfillment of agreements. Read more…

Sincerity and transparency, avoiding deceiving, manipulating, and lying to harm innocent people. Read more…
Consideration for others. Read more..

Seeking justice and mutually beneficial solutions. Read more…

Respecting the rights of others. Read more…

Recognition of equality in terms of these rights. Read more…

Trying not to cause any unjustified harm to anyone. Read more…
Not stealing or taking advantage of others. Read more…
It could be summarized as not doing to others what we don’t like done to us.

It is obvious that an upright person contributes to the well-being of others, and a dishonest person goes through the world causing harm. Read more at…

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s be honest

This topic is important enough to delve into by reading the different articles of DO NOT HARM!… read…

Openness

The culture of respect and cordiality implies openness and welcoming. We are not talking about exaggerated and forced inclusivity, but moderate and reasonable. In this sense, it can be healthy to maintain distance from other people or groups that make us feel bad, that is, that are toxic, especially when we have expressed that their attitude harms us and they still do not change. Therefore, we refer to openness to the extent that it does not make us feel bad.

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s be open

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s avoid harmful herd mentality

An open attitude is not only social (towards other people) but also mental (towards other ideas and cultures), accepting and even valuing diversity. And, again, we are talking about a balanced and moderate approach, which involves appreciating the aspects we like about other cultures (attitudes, mentality, gastronomy, music, architecture, etc.), respecting neutral aspects, and distancing ourselves from and disapproving of negative ones, opposing abuses and injustices.

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s appreciate diversity

Likewise, this openness is fluid and comfortable, recognizing the fact that we naturally tend to feel more at ease, to relate more, and to form groups with like-minded people and cultures. Therefore, it is logical, for example, that Europeans have a closer approach to other Europeans and Westerners, Arabs with other Arabs of different nationalities, and sub-Saharan Africans with people from other countries in that area. It is an approach to others that will normally depend naturally on the degree of similarity.

On the other hand, an open mind is not at odds with closing doors to harmful immigration… read more

Finally, people oriented towards happiness have much in common with others who also share this way of thinking, forming a broad community with them, regardless of race, nationality, religion, etc. All of us who identify with or sympathize to a greater or lesser extent with this modus operandi are united by shared values, and it is logical that we foster bonds and ways of grouping among ourselves.

1.2.4. MODERATE CULTURE OF WORK, EFFORT, AND EXCELLENCE

Two consequences of the sense of responsibility towards ourselves and others are the moderate culture of work, effort, and excellence, which is different from overexertion, excessive work, over-demandingness, exaggerated perfectionism, and a high level of pressure, all of which cause exhaustion, stress, anxiety, and discomfort.

LET’S BUILD A BETTER WORLD!: Let’s strive for excellence to achieve it

DO NOT HARM!: Let’s not impose excessive work

This culture includes a desire to do a sufficiently well-done job, reasonable efficiency and productivity, rigor, good practices, continuous training, and providing a good education for our children. It also includes the desire for progress and continuous improvement. Closely related to this are innovation, creativity, initiative, and entrepreneurship, especially for people who naturally possess this facet.

A consequence of the motivation for progress is the balance between living in the present and long-term vision, between spending and foresight-saving-investment, since the former helps to enjoy the quality of life in the now and the latter ensures a better existence in the future.

If each member of society (business owners, employees, politicians, civil servants, etc.) does their job well, society as a whole tends to function well, and this impacts well-being. Some fruits of this are usually prosperity, good health and education, or guaranteed citizen safety, all of which contribute to their quality of life.

Likewise, wealthy and functional societies are also usually associated with other elements related to happiness, such as freedom, peace, justice, information, greater rights, more responsible parenthood, etc. Furthermore, the culture of effort leads us to work and strive with perseverance for goals related to well-being, such as:

Optimizing our happiness.

Achieving that of our children.

Having satisfying relationships.

Building a society increasingly conducive to the well-being of people and other animals.

This culture is also related to respect and honesty, given that it implies that when something is desired, it is not taken from others, but rather achieved through one’s own effort…read more.

1.2.5. SIMPLICITY

Simplicity includes simplification, modesty, and humility. It is often not easy, but it is very beneficial both for us to feel good (although at first it may seem quite the opposite) and for others to do so too. When we boast, show off, exhibit, or simply display things that others desire, they may feel bad and even believe they are miserable when comparing themselves to us. That is why so many people get depressed when they see photos of others’ false “perfect lives” on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media. In contrast, an environment of reasonable discretion, simplicity, and equality is comfortable.

Finally, it should be clarified that all these guidelines are for us to follow (to the extent we deem appropriate) and not for us to demand or pressure others to apply them. It is advisable not even to judge them if they do not, at least to the extent that they do not harm anyone except in legitimate self-defense. After all, everyone is free to do with their life what they see fit, always without harming anyone.

2. OTHER COMPONENTS OF A HAPPINESS-ORIENTED SOCIETY

2.1. Families focused on well-being: