Mod. 2.1 - My Soul's Wake Up Call

Share your reflections on what about the state of the world feels unbearable to you; what pains you in the darkest hour of night? In doing so, briefly consult the 9 Domains of Gross National Happiness developed by the Bhutanese Government and adopted by the UN as a better North Star for human and social development than GDP/GNP, to connect your personal sense of pain to issues experienced at global scale.

GNH 9 Domains of Measurement:

1. Psychological Well Being 2. Material Well Being/Standard of Living

3. Good Governance 4. Health

5. Education 6. Community Vitality

7. Cultural Diversity and Resilience 8. Balanced Time Use

9. Ecological Diversity

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Like many people, the COVID-19 pandemic thrust me into a near constant, and unsustainable sense of panic and insecurity. During that time I learned a number of skills to calm myself, acclimate, and remind myself of what I can control and what I can't. This process has massively reduced the number of areas that feel unbearable to me because I've accepted that so many of them are outside of my control or ability to change. While threats to American democracy are certainly real and a cause for concern, I've taught myself not to expend energy in areas outside of my control and remind myself of what I am doing to contribute to the ongoing American way of life. Until recently, the area keeping me up most nights was related to my long-term financial health. I recently relocated to a new city and moved in with my partner to begin building our life together and that process is all very new. We are both workaholics and still experience feelings that our work isn't sustaining or supporting the life we would like to have. My new full-time role is the first salaried position I've had in almost 3 years. More than anything, it's provided a much-needed sigh of relief that I will have a consistent monthly income that I can build from through other projects.