Recently, I searched online to see if the word “business” comes from the word “busy”—or, more precisely, the act of being busy, i.e., “busy” + “ness”—and, as it turns out, I was right.
The etymology of “business” traces back to the Old English word “bisignis”, which meant “anxiety, care, occupation.” This term is derived from “bisig” (Old English for “busy”) combined with the suffix “-nis”, which denotes a state or condition. In other words, “business” originally meant “the state of being busy”—just as I suspected. Over time, its meaning evolved to refer to commercial or mercantile activity, but the core idea of being occupied or engaged in activity remains at its heart. So yes, “business” is essentially “busy-ness” in its oldest sense!
This makes sense to me because we are often busy doing something—though that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best thing to do. After all, many people are busy doing nothing particularly interesting, and they often have little to show for it at the end of the day, at least from the perspective of others. As I joke, even a homeless person might tell you they’re busy, but if you offer them $100 for 10 minutes of their time, suddenly they find time to pay attention to you.
In other words, being busy is relative. If someone tells you they can’t do something because they’re busy with something else, they can often still be convinced to do what you want—with the right incentives. For example, if you metaphorically put a gun to their head, you’d certainly have their full attention. No doubt about it.
In my personal life, I find that I have a lot of free time. In fact, if it weren’t for my blog, writing books, and my happiness “business,” I’d probably struggle to find something meaningful to do. I might even be bored and waste a lot of time. Then again, maybe I am wasting my time now—but at least it feels meaningful to me, which is why I do it.
Of course, traveling could be an option, but I promise you that one can only travel for so long before even that loses most of its appeal.
On the other hand, one of my close friends will soon start a new job. Until now, they’ve had plenty of free time, but soon they’ll be “all hands on deck” and likely won’t have enough time for personal pursuits. This is a normal experience for many of us when we have a job.
Conversely, some people use jobs as an escape from their free time, from the abyss of life. However, whether they’re at work, at home, free, or busy, they’re still suffering. In other words, it’s all a distraction—unless you can find a way to enjoy it all, regardless of what you’re doing.
And this is what Optimal Happiness is ultimately about. As Buddhist monks say, “Even if you lock us in a cave for our entire lives, we will still be happy.” Of course, it’s better to live a happy life in all environments—not just by escaping society, but by thriving in any society, at any moment, regardless of what’s happening. It is possible to do so. This is the study and promise of Optimal Happiness.
While I won’t give you all the steps in this blog post (it’s too long, and we have programs that teach this skill), I want to say this: Happiness is possible, and I hope you can find it in your life, too.
Stay happy!
