Many of us spend much of our lives focused on doing things in an attempt to make us feel “happy”.

This may initially seem like a worthy pursuit, but does the practice of “happy-chasing”, and nothing more, lead to a truly satisfying existence? Too often, when we do find something that invokes momentary happiness, it's like a sugar-rush for the brain. Fun, but not sustainable.

Is there something more we can do to get some long-term satisfaction?

Instead of just chasing happiness, what if we chased a life of fulfillment?

A fulfilled life has loads of moments of happiness, and bonus, there's much more! Fulfillment provides a deep sense of meaning, purpose, and completeness that is remains even when we're not “blissing-out” in moments of happiness.

We can and we should demand more for ourselves. I'll show you how to begin your own journey to fulfillment by discussing one of my favorite characteristics of fulfilled life…

Growing!

I'm not talking about getting older or taller. I'm talking about our mental growth. Our minds thrive on engagement and stimulation. Not just in familiar tasks, but in learning and challenging ourselves. Engaging in a life dedicated to constantly learning can improve our relationships, business, and our overall competencies.

A 4  year study at the Autónoma University of Madrid revealed adults engaged in learning activities experienced:

• Improved memory function

• Improved social activities

• Improved productivity

• Increased emotional balance

• Decreased likelihood of depression.

Keep your mind engaged. Learn something new, and/or improve your knowledge on a topic, hobby or skill that you're already familiar with.

One of the greatest things we can do to stimulate growth is to have clarity about what we want. To take a dream and transform it into a goal. How? By developing a strategy and obsessively taking real action toward making it real.

When we're making the journey toward accomplishing a goal, we're constantly learning and growing. Decide to learn more, grow more, feel more vibrant and alive!

Mental growth doesn't have to come from enrolling in formal educational classes. It certainly can, but there are plenty of things to learn that will strengthen your mind.

• Learning an Instrument

• Painting

• Personal Development

• Writing

• Photography

• Dancing

• Film making

• Cooking…

This list could literally be endless, but the point is that you don't have to spend tons of money and tie yourself down to traditional education to be growing mentally.

Here are a few of my favorite resources for learning something new at no cost:

1. iTunesU – Harvard, Yale, Stanford, MIT, Cambridge are all represented here. There is a seemingly endless source of free courses on everything from Language to Music to Neuroscience that can be found and enjoyed at no cost on iTunes U. I almost feel guilty using it so much….almost.

2. edX.org – Much like iTunes, edX offers from courses from some of the heaviest hitters in the world on topics ranging from architecture to philosophy. They also have peer to peer tools for a more social experience as you learn. You will need to register, but it only takes a sec and it's 100% free.

3. Openculture.com – Free textbooks, language lessons, movies, certificate courses, audiobook …phew! I'm outta breath. There's so much more here, it's all free, and you're really going to enjoy it. Check them out!

These are just my favorite 3, and you could spend a lifetime learning from these resources.

Feel free to check them out, or Google “open course” + your topic to find many more free resources on virtually any area of interest.

Remember, an active mind is a fulfilled mind, and a fulfilled mind is usually…happy!

I hope you enjoy!

Be kind to yourself. Be kind to your life. You only get one.

We’ll chat soon — Until then, as always, I’ll be cheering you on.