Wayne Dyer on Happiness, The Alley Cat Story

Wayne Dyer has a lot of quotes and sayings about happiness and getting there. One of his most memorable quotes is, “There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way.”

Which simply means that you cannot get to happiness by acquiring things or searching for it. Happiness is a state of mind, a feeling, a choice. Happiness is found within and is not external to you. You get to choose how you feel.

While that may be the most often quotes line on happiness from Wayne Dyer, there is a story about an Alley cat that I have read in his books and heard in some of his speeches that I have really enjoyed so I will share it with you.

I found an audio version of him talking about it that you can listen to below.

But I’ll retell it with some of my own wording as well.

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One day an old alley cat is out for a walk when he notices a kitten chasing its tail around in circles. Slightly amused, the old alley cat watched this go on for quite some time. Finally he walked up to the kitten and said, “Excuse me little Kitten…I’ve been watching you for quite some time chasing your tail in circles, what exactly are you doing?”

Without stopping, the kitten replied, “I just got out of Cat Philosophy School…Today we learned two things…The first…is that the most important thing…to a cat…is happiness.”

There was an awkward silence as the kitten was clearly out of breath. “And the second thing?” asked the old alley cat.

The kitten took a deep breath, “The second thing is that…happiness is found…in our tail…So I’ve been…chasing my tail…because… when I catch it…*gasp*…I’ll have a hold…on…eternal happiness.”

The old alley cat was amused. “You know, I may have not had the same advantages you’ve had in life. And I never went to Cat Philosophy School. But I’ve been out on the streets for the last 13 years and I’ve learned the same thing.”

“Really…” said the kitten, “Did you…catch your tail…and get…eternal…happiness?”

The old alley cat shook his head, “No…I never caught it.”

The kitten stopped chasing his tail and turned to face the alley cat, “Well…what happened then?”

The old alley cat said, “It’s true that happiness is the most important thing in the world for a cat. And it’s true that it is indeed located in our tail.”

He paused before continuing.

“But I’ve discovered that if I go about my business…and live my life the way I want too…my tail follows me wherever I go.”

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That story is one of my favorite stories when it comes to being happy. You can’t chase or find happiness, you just have to choose it. The best way to choose happy is living your life the way you want to.