State Your Happy

In today's hectic, fastpaced and materialistic world, Michael Teh shares his formula for regaining one's sense of balance and happiness in life

- Elizabeth Soong

We all want to be successful in life, but every so often we continue to hustle and grind till we become exhausted, anxious, irritated, angry, sleepless, burned out. In a word, it’s called stress and if proper steps are not taken to manage it, chronic stress develops which then potentially leads to depression, insomnia, raised blood pressure, heart rate, and blood sugar levels. It does not only affect you but others in your life as well.

If anyone can relate, it’s Michael Teh. As an entrepreneur and investor, Teh had amassed wealth and financial gains, having made his first million dollars at age 26. But the drawback was, chasing after success had become an obsession, and he found himself expending time and energy focusing on investing and trading on the stock markets and buying businesses. Due to excessive risk taking and commitments, he became overwhelmed with immense stress and fear, and even allowed his ego to get the better of him, leading to constant arguments with his family and business associates.

“It actually created a lot of unpeaceful moments towards my family,” he shares. “My life was being driven by external factors—the stock market, my business dealings—and when my expectations were not met, I get very upset, which then leads to anxiety, anger and all that. So I realised, this shouldn’t be the way, because if you’re not mindful, we become consumed by all these negative energies and if we don’t purify them, we will create a negative [vibe] towards yourself first, then your family, your kids, your parents, and ultimately your friends and colleagues. It made me question, why have we become the puppet of all these negative energies?”