How to Find Real Happiness Without Waiting for the Perfect Moment
Have you ever noticed how hard it is to truly enjoy the present? We often hear about the importance of “living in the moment,” but putting it into practice is another story. Let me share what I’ve learned from my own life, and why I believe this is the real key to well-being.
Right now, I’m sitting at Darling Harbour in Sydney—a beautiful place. But even in such a stunning spot, it’s easy to let your mind wander. Imagine you’re on vacation in Australia. Instead of soaking up every second, you catch yourself thinking, “Only three days left,” or, “I’ll have to leave soon.” Suddenly, you’re not really there anymore. You’re already living in the future, and the present slips away.
This doesn’t just happen on holidays. When you start a new job, you might tell yourself, “I need to make a good impression during my probation period.” In Australia, that’s six months; in France, it’s usually three. So you hold back, waiting for the “real” experience to start. Then, when probation ends, you start thinking about your annual salary review. You tell yourself, “I can’t relax yet, I need to work extra hours if I want that raise.” And after that, there’s always something else—another milestone, another worry, another reason not to enjoy where you are.
It’s the same story with money. There’s this idea of “fuck you money”—having enough saved up so you can tell your boss or anyone else, “I’m done.” I know people who work in banking in London, saving for years, hoping to reach that magic number so they can move back to France, buy a house, and retire early. But after ten or fifteen years, they realize it’s never enough. Life keeps moving, families grow, expenses rise, and the goalpost shifts. The truth is, you’ll never have “enough” money. The more you have, the more you spend. It’s a trap.
“The trouble is, you think you have time.”
— Buddha
The same goes for time. You’ll never magically find more of it. If you don’t make time for what matters, it won’t just appear. You have to carve it out yourself. Maybe that means setting an alarm and leaving work at 5:25pm, even if everyone else stays later. Those extra 25 minutes each day add up—over a week, that’s more than two hours you’ve reclaimed for yourself.
So here’s my advice: stop waiting for the perfect moment. Start your dream project, even if you don’t feel ready. Buy the house, even if the mortgage seems scary. Take the leap, even if you’re not sure you have enough money or time. Because if you keep waiting for “enough,” you’ll never get there.
Life is beautiful. It deserves to be lived fully, right now. Don’t let worries about the future steal your present. The only way to enjoy what you have is to decide to do it now.
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”
— C.S. Lewis
Key Takeaways
- Stop waiting for the “right” time—there’s no such thing.
- Enjoy where you are, not where you think you should be.
- Money and time will never feel like “enough.” Start anyway.
Action Steps
- Set a daily reminder to pause and notice your surroundings.
- Choose one dream or goal and take a small step toward it today.
- Decide on a time to leave work and stick to it, no matter what.
Reflection
- What are you putting off until “someday”?
- How can you enjoy your present, right now?
- What’s one thing you can do today to move closer to your dream?
Pierre-Henry Soria
#Happiness #Living in the Present #Mindfulness #Money #Personal Experience #Self-Transcendence #Tasks #Well-Being