Welcome to 2023!
1 January is just the day after 31 December, but we've imbued it with symbolic importance. The end of the year is a time for reflection. The start of the new year is a time for new beginnings.
Have you ever wondered why we do this?
A long time ago
About 4,000 years ago, the Ancient Babylonians set new year pledges. They celebrated their new year - which began in mid-March - with a festival. They also planted crops, pledged allegiance to their king, and promised to repay their debts. They believed that, if they fulfilled their new year promises, then the gods would favour them.
And so, through the ages and cultures, humans have celebrated the new year. In different ways, but always with some kind of promise or resolution.
The pursuit of happiness
I don't know how psychologists explain this. But I think we all need new beginnings. We need to know that we can be better than we were, and can have a better life than we had.
Because, more than anything, we want to be happy - however we define that.
Eskom is shedding happiness
For South Africans, 2023 did not get off to a good start. Load-shedding is so bad that we now hope for stage 3. The predictions for future stages are dire.
Last year, in "Becoming a Sphynx" I wrote about all the kinds of shedding we seem to do. Load-shedding, water-shedding, money-shedding (aka inflation) and time-shedding (thanks to bad customer service).
And now - despite our generators and batteries and solar panels - we face the risk of internet shedding. Internet service providers like OpenServe rely on electricity. Their battery backup systems are not designed for these levels of outage. They either cannot cope with the length of the blackout, or don't get enough time to recharge when the power is on. And that's true of the cellular providers as well, who are tired of their batteries being stolen.
All of this makes us scared and angry. It definitely doesn't make us happy.
A 12-minute start to happiness
We don't have control over the disaster that is Eskom. But that doesn't mean we can't be happy.
The best Ted talk I have ever listened to is
Achor has spent his career researching the concept of positive psychology. This is not "fuzzy wuzzy new age woo-woo" stuff. This is the science of happiness. Contrary to our belief, 90% of our happiness is not determined by our external world. Instead, it is determined by the way our brains process the world. Do yourself a favour - take 12 minutes and watch the Ted talk.
My 2023 resolution
I bought Achor's book, "The Happiness Advantage" after I first watched the video. It made a real impression on me, and I implemented some of his advice. But over the years, I've forgotten parts of it. Recently I was telling a friend about it (again). She told me that she had noticed the positive change in me at the time I first read it. And that some of that has faded.
That was a quiet shock for me. This year, one of my goals is to read the book again. Because I refuse to let Eskom control my happiness.
My 2023 wish for you
May you have electricity, water and a great Internet connection. And if all of those get shed, may you still be happy.
Random acts of kindness increase our own happiness. It only takes a few seconds to share your comment, and it might make both of us happy.