Have you experienced something incredible, maybe even life-changing? Maybe it was a huge “Aha” moment. Or a delightful experience that gave you a new perspective.
But when you try to share that experience with someone else, they don’t see what you did. It’s not as amazing anymore. Not as shiny or profound.
Where, when, and how you experience joy is rooted in your preferences. It doesn’t have to mean anything to anyone else. It only matters that it captures your attention and lights you up.
The love and care you have for others makes you want to share these experiences with them. Because you’ve found so much joy in these moments, you want others to feel this level of bliss and connection too.
But when the experience isn’t the same for them, it can create problems.
You’re frustrated they aren’t getting it. You might try to justify your joy. You explain all the reasons the experience was profound and amazing, trying to force them to feel the same joy. And you’re disappointed when they don’t.
Or maybe you start to question whether your preferences are good enough.
You look at others and see how much they seem to enjoy certain things, and you look for happiness in their endeavors.
You start to want what others have. But the joy you long to experience never seems to materialize. Because it’s not authentic for you.
This is what Osho is getting at in this quote. Joy is something you can only experience alone.
It doesn’t mean no one else is around when you experience joy. It means that your specific preferences will never be the same as anyone else’s. You have a unique set of skills, experiences, and desires for the life you want to live. Joy shows up to indicate you are living a life that is meaningful to you.
From this place, perhaps you can drop the idea that anyone needs to discover joy in the same things as you or that you can ever possibly find happiness following the path of another.
Joy is selfish. But not in a bad way. It’s rooted in who you are. It’s rooted like that in each of us.
The challenge is having the courage to follow your joy in a world that wants you to conform to its way of thinking. And it takes courage to not force anyone else to walk your path to joy.
You were meant to live in joy.
When you connect to those things that light you up, you become a beacon for others – not to follow your path but to have the courage to seek their own form of joy.
Joy can often feel elusive – like it’s hiding from you. But it’s simply waiting for you to turn away from all the societal noise and go within. To discover what holds meaning to you, to have the courage to follow your joy even when you feel alone.
Does this mean you shouldn’t invite people to join you in experiences that bring you joy? NO!
Invite them, but don’t expect them to have the same experience as you. Don’t be disappointed if they can’t reach the same levels of joy as you. Simply thank them for being there.
And say Yes to invitations to experience joy where others find it. Don’t feel bad if it doesn’t resonate in the same way for you. Celebrate that someone else is experiencing joy and asked you to be a witness to it. Thank them for inviting you.
Because the truth is that when you follow your path to joy, a whole world will appear with others walking this path beside you. They may not be delighting in the specific things you are rather they’re honoring that you’ve found the path meant for you.
Universal joy exists when you dare to find your path. What brings you joy? And how can you bring more of it into your life? A good place to start is by looking at your work. Does it line up with your values? Is it bringing you closer to joy (or farther from it)?
Click below to see how your work stacks up and if it’s helping or hindering you on your path to joy and success:
