Dorkiness and Success

If you have read my book The Humanist Approach to Happiness: Practical Wisdom , you know that I have a chapter in there about being a dork. I happen to think being a dork is one of the key to living a happy and successful life.

There is an internet dance craze going around right now called Gangnam Style, which is by a k-pop phenom named Psy. One of the reasons we all love this video is not just that the music is catchy. It is. But it is the dancing that really makes this video work. And in case you haven’t seen it, I’ve included it below. Suffice it to say, the dancing in this video is over the top dorky. I mean, seriously dorky. Unabashedly dorky. And that’s why we like it.

Psy is famous and loved because he has embraced his dorkiness and he has become a success as a result. So, don’t feel like you have to hide you dorkiness to fit in. If you want to be happy, be a dork. It doesn’t matter what other people think. It matters whether you are happy with who you are. If you are, people will flock to you as we are all flocking to Psy and making videos of ourselves trying to copy his dance moves, which are actually rather hard to do because, well, they are and most of us aren’t willing to let ourselves go to the extent you need to do do those moves.

Anyway – enjoy!

You are a dork!

Actually, everyone is, just not everyone admits it. I do. And I am happy as a result. In fact, I think one of the keys to being a happy person is freeing yourself from the fear that people won’t approve of you when you are your dorky little self.

Look at it this way. Trying to figure out how to act so other people approve of you is exhausting and impossible. Trying to act in a way that isn’t how you would normally act is also exhausting and can only be done for short periods of time. So, you might as well be yourself.

Of course, to pull this off and not be ostracized from polite society you still need to be a responsible compassionate and ethical person. But as long as you are, then being a dork will actually help you make true friends that you can actually relax around. And that will make you happy.