What’s the secret to a happy life? Is it money? Fame? The perfect relationship? Can you find it in a job? A new house? A fancy car?
The truth is, the potential for happiness is already inside all of us. It’s not about anything external. It’s about what’s going on in your mind.
When it comes to finding happiness, peace, and purpose, mindfulness is key. You have the power to cultivate a mindset and a lifestyle of peace and happiness by retraining your brain. And in the stressful time of a global pandemic, it’s more important than ever to work on finding that deep inner peace we all desire.
My guest today is here to teach us all how to cultivate the habits that create happiness. As a former monk, my close friend Jay Shetty has a unique perspective on cultivating a mindset, lifestyle, and daily routine to help achieve happiness and success. This episode is inspiring, informative, and uplifting. Let’s get started!
Who Is Jay Shetty?
Jay Shetty is a School of Greatness luminary and one of my closest friends. He’s a leader and influential mindfulness coach, as well as an award-winning author and popular podcaster.
Jay’s journey started when he was 21 years old and he became a monk. He started slowly — spending half his summer vacations in India — but ultimately, he spent three years living as a monk full-time. He meditated for anywhere from four to eight hours a day, studied wisdom, and served the local community in India. Jay learned a lot from those years, but eventually, he knew a different life was calling him.
Jay left India with a lot of wisdom and a passion for sharing it with others. He developed online courses in wisdom and mindfulness that have since been viewed by over two million people. He started a coaching business that has helped countless people achieve success and develop greater happiness. And he began speaking publicly about “The Monk Mindset” to inspire and empower people to well-being and the kind of passion and joy we all crave.
As if all that wasn’t enough, Jay also launched the wildly popular podcast, On Purpose. (You can check out his interview with yours truly here!) There, he interviews a variety of inspiring people and shares his own valuable insights to help listeners live a life of greater purpose.
And finally, Jay has recently released his first book, Think Like a Monk. There’s a tremendous amount of wisdom in this book. Jay’s teaching us all how to overcome fear and anxiety to live lives of courage and compassion. I know you’re going to want to read it cover to cover!
But first, Jay Shetty is sharing a ton of his wisdom and insight right here on The School of Greatness. Let’s dive in.
The Three S’s: Creating an Environment of Peace and Happiness
I was so excited to have Jay on the podcast — particularly now that he’s published Think Like a Monk — because I knew he’d have a lot of wisdom to share. I especially wanted to ask him about mindfulness. I hear the term “mindfulness” a lot, but I knew Jay would bring an interesting perspective to the table, and he didn’t fail to deliver.
“When I hear the word ‘mindfulness,’ to me, what it really means is intentionality. What I mean by that is — are you crafting, designing, and intentionally creating your life? Or are you just coasting in the passenger seat of your life, which is just dragging you and driving you wherever it’s taking you?” – Jay Shetty
What a powerful question. Are you intentionally creating your life, or are you letting life drive you wherever it wants? Happiness and peace are not going to happen to you all by themselves — You have to create an environment where you can experience those positive emotions.
When it comes to creating a life and an environment of happiness, Jay says there are three S’s that we need to think about:
“There’s something in the book that I talk about called ‘The Three S’s,’ which are sights, scents, and sounds. And if you think about that — we’re exposed to sights, scents, and sounds every single day … but how many of us have crafted those to be sights, scents, and sounds that we want in our life?” – Jay Shetty
Jay used the example of our alarm clocks to illustrate how the sounds in our environment affect our mindsets. When we wake up to an “alarm,” we’re literally starting the day with our brain feeling alarmed. What if, instead, we used nature sounds or a favorite song that brings us joy to wake up? That would be one way to craft an environment of happiness.
I’m reminded of my friend Chris Lee. Chris said you want to create an environment like a rain forest where things can thrive and grow as opposed to having an environment like a desert where things go to die. Think about ways you can craft the sight, scents, and sounds of your environment in ways that allow you to grow and thrive. When you do that, you’re practicing mindfulness and cultivating peace and happiness.
