📋 Is Happiness a Choice or a Result of Circumstances?

🌐 Understanding the Topic’s Importance

This essay topic allows B-school aspirants to showcase their understanding of ethical dilemmas and psychological concepts while linking them to societal and organizational contexts.

⏱️ Effective Planning and Writing

• Time Allocation:
  • 🕒 Planning: 5 minutes
  • 🖊️ Writing: 20 minutes
  • 🔍 Review: 5 minutes
• Preparation Tips: Highlight studies from psychology, such as Seligman’s PERMA model of well-being, and reference global comparisons like the World Happiness Report.

✍️ Introduction Techniques for Essays

• Contrast Approach:
  “While wealthy nations consistently top happiness rankings, countless individuals in poverty report high life satisfaction. Is happiness a matter of choice?”
• Timeline Introduction:
  “From ancient Stoic teachings to modern-day psychological studies, the pursuit of happiness has been an enduring human endeavor.”

📊 Structuring the Essay Body

1. Achievements:Topic Sentence → Example: “Happiness interventions, like gratitude journals, have shown significant improvements in well-being across demographics.”
2. Challenges:Problem Statement → Example: “The rising global mental health crisis reflects the limitations of choice in achieving happiness.”
3. Future Outlook:Recommendations → Example: “Encouraging public-private partnerships to promote happiness-focused policies.”

📄 Concluding Effectively

• Balanced Approach:
  “Happiness results from both choice and circumstances, requiring a holistic view for sustainable well-being.”
• Global Comparison:
  “Drawing lessons from Bhutan’s focus on Gross National Happiness, nations can integrate well-being into policy frameworks.”

✍️ Sample Short Essays

• Balanced Perspective:
  “Happiness is neither entirely a choice nor solely circumstance-driven; it emerges from their interplay. A resilient mindset, coupled with supportive conditions, creates sustainable well-being.”
• Solution-Oriented:
  “Fostering happiness requires both individual effort and systemic changes. Governments must complement personal resilience with equitable policies.”
• Global Comparison:
  “The Nordic countries, with their focus on societal welfare, demonstrate how supportive circumstances enable individuals to choose happiness.”