--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When, anyway, did happiness become the…" description: "\"“When, anyway, did happiness become the one golden ring we reach for? How about being guided by what is right or ethical or meaningful? Or by making—as..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/heather-harpham-56499_choice_when-anyway-did-happiness-become-the-one_504481.jpg" --- # When, anyway, did happiness become the one golden ring we… ![“When, anyway, did happiness become the one golden ring we reach for? How about being guided by what is right or ethical or meaningful? Or by making—as Brian sometimes called it—the “growth choice.” That sounded good, but I wasn’t that mature. I’d always aimed for what brought me the most joy.” quote by Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/heather-harpham-56499_choice_when-anyway-did-happiness-become-the-one_504481.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/heather-harpham-56499_choice_when-anyway-did-happiness-become-the-one_504481.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/heather-harpham-56499_choice_when-anyway-did-happiness-become-the-one_504481.jpg) > ““When, anyway, did happiness become the one golden ring we reach for? How about being guided by what is right or ethical or meaningful? Or by making—as Brian sometimes called it—the “growth choice.” That sounded good, but I wasn’t that mature. I’d always aimed for what brought me the most joy.”” [Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote questions happiness as a narrow goal and suggests choosing actions based on ethics, meaning, or personal growth instead of fleeting joy. **In simple terms:** Choose purpose over pleasure. Key Takeaway Prioritize ethical, meaningful choices. Themes values ethics growth purpose happiness Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career decisions - relationship choices - volunteering - education - self‑development Key Concepts Existentialism humanistic psychology moral philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What does “growth choice” mean to you? - How can you align joy with ethical actions? A Different Perspective May be difficult to balance personal joy with ethical demands. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Called Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/called-growth-2560788/) [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Growth Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-choice-266047/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Happiness Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness-golden-357983/) ## Related quotes > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [You are quite, quite wrong if you think that ... I find your happiness painful. What matters is that happiness - the golden day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winifred-holtby/you-are-quite-quite-wrong-if-you-think-that-i-find-your-happiness/) [Winifred Holtby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winifred-holtby/) > [Corporations are mandated, in effect, to 'grow or die,' a rule also called 'the growth imperative.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-simon/corporations-are-mandated-in-effect-to-grow-or-die-a-rule-also-called/) [Michele Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-simon/) > [“In the radiance and the silence, she ran on the vast expanse of hard, smooth sand, beside herself with joy. Ah, when you only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-whipple/in-the-radiance-and-the-silence-she-ran-on-the-vast-expanse-of-hard/) [Dorothy Whipple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-whipple/) > [“The concepts of health and sickness, good and evil, better and worse, have the same use and relation to life as those of long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/the-concepts-of-health-and-sickness-good-and-evil-better-and-worse/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [“By eliminating choice there is in turn an elimination of growth. You must have a choice and in experiencing both the light and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-moran/by-eliminating-choice-there-is-in-turn-an-elimination-of-growth-you/) [Timothy Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-moran/) > [Every choice we make is either a growth choice or a fear choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-morton/every-choice-we-make-is-either-a-growth-choice-or-a-fear-choice/) [Brian Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-morton/) > [To make the growth choice instead of the fear choice a dozen times a day is to move a dozen times a day towards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-maslow/to-make-the-growth-choice-instead-of-the-fear-choice-a-dozen-times-a/) [Abraham Maslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-maslow/) > [When there's downward pressure on growth, one choice is to adjust economic policy, increase deficits, relax monetary policy. That might have a short-term benefit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-keqiang/when-there-s-downward-pressure-on-growth-one-choice-is-to-adjust/) [Li Keqiang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-keqiang/) > [Life is an ongoing process of choosing between safety (out of fear and need for defense) and risk (for the sake of progress and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-maslow/life-is-an-ongoing-process-of-choosing-between-safety-out-of-fear-and/) [Abraham Maslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-maslow/) > [Ask yourself - Where do I want to be one year from today? Personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/ask-yourself-where-do-i-want-to-be-one-year-from-today-personal/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [“Your judgments about another person say more about your own character than the character of the person you are pointing a finger at. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alaric-hutchinson/your-judgments-about-another-person-say-more-about-your-own-character/) [Alaric Hutchinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alaric-hutchinson/) > [“Happiness is a choice. It is not always an easy one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bach/happiness-is-a-choice-it-is-not-always-an-easy-one/) [Richard Bach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bach/) > [“Satan wants you to believe that you don't have a choice in the matter. You can't be happy until things go the way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-rietzsch/satan-wants-you-to-believe-that-you-don-t-have-a-choice-in-the-matter/) [Lindsey Rietzsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-rietzsch/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) ## More by Heather Harpham > [“everything. If you are lucky, you meet four or five people in a lifetime who you’re totally comfortable with. Comfortable in a way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-harpham/everything-if-you-are-lucky-you-meet-four-or-five-people-in-a/) [Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) > [“We act out of a Molotov cocktail of conscuious and unconscious desires. And also, we just do stuff.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-harpham/we-act-out-of-a-molotov-cocktail-of-conscuious-and-unconscious/) [Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) > [“There was a collective hope at the service that the children were in heaven. Riding ponies, playing bingo, exploring the sea. But I don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-harpham/there-was-a-collective-hope-at-the-service-that-the-children-were-in/) [Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) > [“Serious illness, life-threatening illness, was outside the realm of my imagination. If pushed to consider the question, I might have responded that I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-harpham/serious-illness-life-threatening-illness-was-outside-the-realm-of-my/) [Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) > [“We were in the throes of infatuation, soft-minded and easily persuaded of our rightness for each other by sexual thrill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-harpham/we-were-in-the-throes-of-infatuation-soft-minded-and-easily-persuaded/) [heather harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) [Explore all 6 Heather Harpham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) ## More Choice quotes > [Making the right decision is hard,telling someone your decision is even harder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/making-the-right-decision-is-hard-telling-someone-your-decision-is/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [“That’s all! Now either leave us alone or join us as a father rather than a receiver of sacrifices. You have the choice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/that-s-all-now-either-leave-us-alone-or-join-us-as-a-father-rather/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [“In a world of fixed future, there can be no right or wrong. Right and wrong demand freedom of choice, but if each action…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lightman/in-a-world-of-fixed-future-there-can-be-no-right-or-wrong-right-and/) [Alan Lightman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lightman/) > [“Exactly. So, what can't you take? Decide which of the two options is harder, and do the other. That way, no matter how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/exactly-so-what-can-t-you-take-decide-which-of-the-two-options-is/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [“too—I realized that my only hope was to give up the life that had been, in order to make room for the life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/too-i-realized-that-my-only-hope-was-to-give-up-the-life-that-had/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [There has always been a feeling with people that they love my singing but not always the choice of material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/there-has-always-been-a-feeling-with-people-that-they-love-my-singing/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [I have too many options when it comes to guitars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-nielsen/i-have-too-many-options-when-it-comes-to-guitars/) [Rick Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-nielsen/) > [“Amazing how a small choice can change your life forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-c-dockens/amazing-how-a-small-choice-can-change-your-life-forever/) [Randy C. Dockens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-c-dockens/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Since I don't outline my books very much, I feel like sometimes I don't have a choice in what the characters do; they just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-todd/since-i-don-t-outline-my-books-very-much-i-feel-like-sometimes-i-don/) [Anna Todd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-todd/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Words can only have an effect on you if you choose to listen to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/words-can-only-have-an-effect-on-you-if-you-choose-to-listen-to-them/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) [Browse all 8,092 Choice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When, anyway, did happiness become the one golden ring we reach for? 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