My generation was raised on the idea that happiness is a choice, so I get mad at myself for feeling other emotions.
That's why, when I heard about the University of Pennsylvania's "monk class" last spring, I wanted to test drive its curriculum.
The formally titled "Living Deliberately" course requires students to "observe a code of silence" and "abstain from using all electronic communications" for a month, according to the university's website.
So at the end of August, I took a 48-hour vow of silence and no technology, ranging from a Sunday afternoon to a Tuesday afternoon.
And I learned something that upended my sense of happiness, and how to achieve it: Less is often more.
Persons:
Monks, Justin McDaniel, McDaniel, It's, I'm, Gilmore
Organizations:
University of Pennsylvania's, Ivy League