Speech
Happiness is now
Goal statement:
By the end of this speech, I would like my audience to practice staying present as they may find a new sense of happiness.
Attention statement:
I have discovered the secret to happiness — and it’s easier than you think.
Introduction:
- It’s been drilled into our heads that happiness is a goal, that one day all of our worries will dissipate and we will be left in a state of bliss. There’s this idea that we’ll be happy once we find wealth or the perfect partner and that is simply not true.
- If you keep treating happiness as an end goal, you may never find it. Your success does not determine your happiness and neither does the perfect relationship. You do.
- So, what’s the secret? You’re experiencing it right now.
Body:
- Let’s try something: I want you to take this moment to absorb your surroundings. What objects fill your space? What sounds are rustling in the background? What do you smell or taste? Who is currently with you? Are you by yourself? Now notice how you feel.
- This is actually an exercise called mindfulness, and it helps ground you and keep you present. When you allow your brain to quiet down and notice the current moment, you find a sense of peace.
- Practicing mindfulness has helped people reduce anxiety, cope better with negative emotions and even find happiness.
- I want to read you a quote from a book I recently read called The power of now by Eckhart Tolle. He wrote: “The more you are able to honor and accept the Now, the more you are free of pain, of suffering - and free of the egoic mind.”
- Basically, what this means is that pain and suffering thrive in the concept of time. We feel emotional baggage from past experiences and anxiety and stress for the future. But what about right now?
- Tolle argues that the “Now” is a gate to happiness that we can all access. Happiness can be found in simply being.
- This is why meditation is such a useful tool for the mind. It’s a way of practicing just being.
- Now I’m sure this sounds like a bunch of hippy BS to some of you, but practicing mindfulness has honestly changed my perspective on life, and I challenge you to try it out too.
- Start by practicing mindfulness and just absorb and appreciate your surroundings. Try reminding yourself to stay present throughout the day. Question whether your problems are living in the past or future and watch them disappear when you live in the “Now.”
Conclusion:- You do not have to chase happiness, it’s already right in front of you.
- Happiness is now
Residual message:
Happiness can be found in the present moment.
