That said, there\u2019s plenty of advice out there on becoming happy, but not too much on staying happy. So who can help us? I know a guy\u2026<\/p>\n Baruch Spinoza. Born in 1632. His family fled to Amsterdam to escape the Portuguese Inquisition.<\/p>\n Now Baruch was quite the thinker. Questioned everything. Most philosophers do, but most don\u2019t question so much that their religious community excommunicates them<\/em>. Yeah, they didn\u2019t just scold him. This was formal excommunication. The divine ejector seat.<\/p>\n So for the rest of his life, Baruch ground lenses for a living. He was offered a fancy university position, but he turned it down. Spent all his free time developing his ideas. Ideas that would eventually make him one of the most awesome thinkers in Western philosophy.<\/p>\n From the outside, it wasn\u2019t an impressive life. He died in 1677 of either tuberculosis or silicosis (we can\u2019t be certain because medicine pretty much hadn\u2019t been invented yet). At the time of his death, all he owned was his lens-grinding gear, a bed, a desk and an awful lot of books.<\/p>\n Okay, I can feel you making that face. I get it. I am also making that face.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat can a 17th-century possibly-tubercular philosopher\/lens-grinder teach me about happiness in the 21st century?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Every account we have of him says he was happy. Even people who didn\u2019t like him<\/em> said he was happy. This guy worked at a job that was (probably) killing him, was booted from his community, refused all the usual trappings of success and died owning very little at age 44\u2026 and yet he was very happy.<\/p>\n How\u2019d he do it?<\/p>\n Lucky for you, he wrote a book. Not lucky for me<\/span> because I had to read it. Spinoza\u2019s Ethics<\/em><\/a> is about as accessible as a geometry textbook. (I prefer my ancient wisdom to come in more accessible forms, ideally as a gummy vitamin.)<\/p>\n Spinoza thought we were reactive and disoriented mammals yanked around by forces and desires we barely comprehend. But he wasn\u2019t grim about it. In fact, he\u2019s kinda inspiring or, at least, as inspiring as you can be when you write about the human condition as if it were a mathematical proof.<\/p>\n He gets to the bottom of why we\u2019re so bound by passions and how we can become freer and happier.<\/p>\n This time we\u2019ll be looking at the Ethics<\/a><\/em> and the Tractatus Politicus<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>by Baruch Spinoza.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s get to it\u2026<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Say somebody cuts you off in traffic. Your immediate reaction is inevitably:<\/p>\n \u201cHow could they?!?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Uh, quite easily, apparently.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I can\u2019t believe they did that!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Sure, you can. They did it. See?<\/p>\n We say we don\u2019t understand something but we\u2019re not trying to understand. We just judge. Then the anger builds. \u201cObviously, this person is pure evil. They\u2019re a narcissist, a monster, a criminal.\u201d<\/em> The nouns start and the thinking stops. Anger has you believing this person could have chosen to behave properly but instead, because they are inherently cruel, they deliberately<\/em> chose to ruin your day.<\/p>\n During moments like this, my shorthand for Spinoza\u2019s perspective is that we should ask, \u201cWhat has to be true for this to make sense?\u201d<\/em> Look at it more like a physics problem: What was the cause of this?<\/em><\/p>\n Because that person is an effect. Nobody\u2019s the sole cause of themselves. Genetics, upbringing, mood, context, whether they ate recently. So many things outside of someone\u2019s control direct their behavior.<\/p>\n Ironically, when you and I screw up, it\u2019s those factors that we think of first: \u201cLook, I didn\u2019t mean it. I didn\u2019t get much sleep last night\u2026\u201d<\/em> But with other people, suddenly we\u2019re free-will absolutists.<\/p>\n \u201cSo you\u2019re saying nobody is responsible for their behavior?!?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n I just checked Merriam-Webster and it says \u201cjustification\u201d and \u201cexplanation\u201d are not synonyms.<\/p>\n A tiger doesn\u2019t choose to be a tiger. It doesn\u2019t lick its paws, debate existing as a camel instead, and then finally settle on being a striped murder carpet. And if it attacks an antelope you don\u2019t say, \u201cWHY ARE YOU BEHAVING THIS WAY? RESPECT THE SOCIAL CONTRACT!\u201d You might be grossed out but you wouldn\u2019t be surprised, because it\u2019s a tiger doing what tigers do.<\/p>\n That said, if the tiger was in your backyard you wouldn\u2019t say, \u201cTigers do what tigers do, guess we have to let it eat Phil.\u201d No, you\u2019d get somebody out there with a tranquilizer gun immediately. You wouldn\u2019t hate and blame the tiger for being a tiger but you would absolutely address the issue.<\/p>\n Enough about wildlife. Somebody does you wrong. Correct them. Or stop talking to them. Or call the cops. Build a tiger-proof fence.<\/em> But you don\u2019t need to be shocked and you don\u2019t need to hate them. That just upsets you.<\/p>\n Whenever you get bothered, ask the question: \u201cWhat has to be true for this to make sense?\u201d<\/em> Maybe they\u2019re having a terrible day or their genetics make them an oblivious person. Look for the real cause, not blame.<\/p>\n Anger tells you very little. It actually prevents you from learning. Looking for causes gives you information. \u201cWhen Sarah is tired, she gets irritable. In the future I should hang out with her earlier in the day.\u201d<\/em> This is far more helpful than \u201cSHE IS EVIL AND MUST BE DESTROYED.\u201d<\/p>\n And science<\/a> shows Spinoza was right. When people consider causes or mitigating circumstances, they don\u2019t get as bothered by bad behavior. They\u2019re still capable of effectively dealing with it, in fact, they may be more capable. But they don\u2019t get as upset.<\/p>\n One little question reduces your anger and improves your problem-solving. Spinoza would say it frees us from bondage. No, not the spicy leather-attire kind. He means we\u2019re not dragged around by our emotions. When we look for causes and use reason, when we make the inexplicable, well, splickable<\/em>, we don\u2019t get worked up. We keep our cool.<\/p>\n (To learn the uncomfortable reason you keep self-sabotaging, click here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n So what\u2019s an even easier way to tame emotions that threaten your happiness?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n In part V of the Ethics<\/em><\/a>, Spinoza says: \u201cAn emotion which is a passion ceases to be a passion as soon as we form a clear and distinct idea of it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Getting specific shrinks the problem. It can still be intimidating but it\u2019s no longer Earth-sized. It\u2019s now problem-sized. Problems you can handle. Earths are another story.<\/p>\n So name the problem. Name what you\u2019re feeling. A little semantic hygiene can make a huge difference. Don\u2019t let the feeling be an abstract ether that surrounds you with worst-case scenarios. Be concrete so you can get a handle on it.<\/p>\n To a surprising degree, modern neuroscience agrees with Spinoza. UCLA researcher Matthew Lieberman<\/a> found that putting feelings into words helps your amygdala relax.<\/p>\n Simply saying, \u201cI feel worried\u201d can make you less emotionally reactive.<\/p>\n (To learn ancient wisdom\u2019s 5 secrets to a good life, click here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n But what about when we\u2019re dealing with really big feelings? We usually handle these all wrong\u2026<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n We often try to deal with negative feelings by thinking about them. But introspection rarely evicts the blues. Introspection usually just leads to more introspection.<\/p>\n The mistake we make is forgetting that we\u2019re human beings with bodies. We act like our body is just a bus that our brain drives around. But we can physically do things that make us feel better, bypassing the brain altogether.<\/p>\n Spinoza says, \u201cAn emotion can neither be hindered nor destroyed except by a contrary and stronger emotion.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Fight fire with fire. And that means doing stuff that produces a bigger positive emotion. I know you wanted deep insights and epiphanies about what\u2019s going on in your head, leading to a Freudian revelation that would fundamentally change\u2026<\/p>\n No. Stop. Just go for a walk with a friend.<\/p>\n Yes, science agrees. Behavioral Activation Therapy<\/a> is one of the most effective treatments for depression and, to criminally oversimplify, it means: do stuff that makes you feel good because doing stuff that makes you feel good makes you feel good.<\/p>\n Call the funny friend. Play that awesome song. Sometimes you have to just get out of the house and get your stupid heart pumping with somebody who never fails to make you laugh, so your brain goes, \u201cWe\u2019re doing happy stuff now? Gotcha. I\u2019ll get the joy chemicals flowing. Gimme a sec\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n (To learn how to get \u201cunstuck\u201d with a little help from philosophy, click here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n But maybe you can\u2019t go out. Or maybe you feel totally, completely, utterly overwhelmed. What\u2019s Spinoza\u2019s nuclear option when there\u2019s an existential threat to your good mood?<\/p>\n Don\u2019t worry, it\u2019s not difficult to do\u2026<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Sometimes our problems look so huge. You know why? Because we\u2019re staring at them too closely. Zoom in enough and a pimple looks like a volcano.<\/p>\n Spinoza has this idea: sub specie aeternitatis<\/em>. It translates as \u201cunder the aspect of eternity.\u201d It\u2019s the sort of phrase that seems like it should be on parchment. For our purposes, it means \u201czoom out.\u201d<\/p>\n Got a problem? Step back from it.<\/p>\n No, farther.<\/p>\n Much<\/em> farther. Zoom out past your home, past your country, past your century. Get some perspective on how in the big scheme of things, this issue is very small.<\/p>\n Concretely, when you feel overwhelmed, ask, \u201cIs this gonna matter ten years from now?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The answer is almost certainly \u201cno.\u201d That is, unless you keep defibrillating it with your attention.<\/p>\n \u201cBut, Eric, is this proven by science?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m so glad you asked. Not exactly<\/em> if we want to take Spinoza literally, but there\u2019s a close cousin. Researchers call it \u201ctemporal distancing\u201d and there\u2019s a study on the subject that\u2019s appropriately named: \u201cThis Too Shall Pass.<\/a>\u201d When people looked at their problems from a distant-future perspective, they felt better.<\/p>\n Take it from the lens grinder: you need a wider-angle lens when looking at your problems. Zoom out. Imagine looking at them ten years from now. Imagine looking at them from another galaxy.<\/p>\n Then come back. Don\u2019t stay out there among the stars.<\/p>\n You have laundry to do.<\/p>\n (To learn how to overcome burnout, click here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n Okay, we\u2019ve covered a lot. Time to round it all up and we\u2019ll also look at the unexpected (and maybe unwelcome) twist in the \u201cWhat has to be true for this to make sense?\u201d<\/em> technique that can really improve your life\u2026<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how to stay happy\u2026<\/p>\n \u201cWhat has to be true for this to make sense?\u201d<\/em> is useful when people are behaving badly. Now comes the inconvenient part:<\/p>\n You\u2019re people too.<\/em><\/p>\n So am I. We also have causes.<\/p>\n Yeah, I was really enjoying the part where Spinoza explained why other people<\/em> were impossible. Unfortunately, this insight covers more than humanity\u2019s very disappointing examples. It also applies to both the organism reading this and the organism writing it.<\/p>\n Your genetics weren\u2019t assigned with your approval. You started forming a personality before you could even pronounce personality. And that whole stew was stirred by parents, hormones, culture, formative humiliations, and whatever context you happen to be in. Face it: how you behave has occasionally been dramatically altered by how long it\u2019s been since you last ate.<\/p>\n![\"stay-happy\"](\"https:\/\/bakadesuyo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/stay-happy.jpeg\" "\\"stay-happy\\"")
Becoming<\/em> happy isn\u2019t hard. Ice cream usually does the trick. Staying<\/em> happy, now there\u2019s a challenge. Often, it doesn\u2019t take much for us to lose our cool and let positive feelings slip away.<\/p>\n\u201cWhat Has To Be True For This To Make Sense?\u201d<\/h2>\n
Name That Feeling<\/h2>\n
Overcome Emotions With Bigger Emotions<\/h2>\n
Zoom Out<\/h2>\n
Sum Up<\/h2>\n
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