You see it every day in commercials. This new pill will help you lose weight. This new book will help you make money in the easiest way possible. You invest into the program, but you then come realize that none of it actually works. It’s sad because the people who create these programs know that people who create these type of shortcut programs know that they are actually feeding on the insecurities of their customers. People who wish to change their entire lives with the swipe of a credit card.

If you’re someone like this, you’re probably trapped in a cycle of consumerism. The only way you can run faster is if you had the best running shoes. The only way to get the girl is if you had the newest sports car. You get the shoes and you’re just as slow as you were before, but I guess you have cool shoes.

But if the shortcuts worked as promised, they wouldn’t be shortcuts, would they? They’d be the standard.

– Seth Godin

The moral of the story is that objects, programs, books, celebrities, don’t bring you happiness. They are not the paths to success. Could they help? Certainly, but the power should not come from these objects. If you do, it’s basically idol worship, and you’re going be disappointed.

A Long Term Strategy

The problem with trying to find a shortcut is that it hinders you from what you should be doing. You should have a goal and generate small habits that will point you toward that goal. Sounds boring. I know. What I’m proposing actually takes hard work and consistency.

So you may ask what habits should you maintain to reach happiness and success? For one, realize that happiness is a state of mind, not a purchase. Experience happiness in everything you do, even when it doesn’t make you happy. There will always be a new gimmick available, but you must resist. It’ll only prolong your suffering. On the road to success, shortcuts are just a detour in disguise.