It will never be enough. No quest to achieve happiness through doing can reach its objective. Happiness is much too elusive to stay. Even more so, when happiness seems to depend on an outcome.

Contentment is different. It is within reach although it can’t be achieved through doing either. But it can ensue. It builds on the stillness that comes when you are present.

Being present can be practiced.

There are many ways to do so. With meditation only being one of them.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe suggested that “one ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”

It’s an invitation to be present with something that affects you.

Invest in yourself leads in a similar direction. Warren Buffet chose that path. He decided to learn but also to teach himself the skills he saw as needed. The difference between both is, that the skills are a means to an end. Whereas his learning is a lifestyle. He is focused on developing insight. It requires presence with the situation and openness to its meaning.

It’s an invitation to be present with what you can impact.

Seneca had a slightly different approach. He suggested finding a good quote, reading a good story, or having a good exchange with a friend every day. It is reaching for inspiration, seeking clarity, or finding guidance. It is being present to what others have to say and share.

It’s an invitation to be present with the connections you can have.

Whatever one does every day, it is shaping who we are and how we want to be present in the world.

Our happiness is the result of that presence.