The Famous Lamp of Aladdin For this activity please begin by recalling the story of Aladdin and his magic lamp. You may know the story from the highly popular animated version that was released by Disney Studios about 25 years ago. If you don't remember the story, here is a brief synopsis. The story comes from a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales titled One Thousand and One Arabian Nights. In this tale, Aladdin is a poor child of the streets who is tricked by a sorcerer into retrieving a magic oil lamp from an enchanted cave. When Aladdin rubs the magic lamp to clean it (in the original story, it is his mother who cleans the lamp), then a magical genie appears who will grant Aladdin three wishes.

Imagine that you have just found the famous lamp of Aladdin. The genie grants you three wishes. What would you ask for? (Sorry, you can't ask for more wishes or use any other clever trick to get more wishes.) Take your time with this task. You may want to list your three wishes and then put them aside for a day or two. Then, look at your three wishes again. Are they still the same? If not, change the list so the three reflect a more stable list of choices. When you are sure the list reflects what you really want then it is time to evaluate what is on your list.

Ask yourself questions such as these: What emotion(s) do I hope to foster with my choices? What behavior(s) do I hope to foster? What would I gain if this wish were granted that I don't have now? Can I realistically achieve this wish without the "magic" of the lamp? What would I choose if I could only have one wish granted?

Here are a few questions you might ask that could be helpful in evaluating your list of three wishes. Do your wishes reflect something to be gained by you or by other people as well? For example, if one of your wishes involved money, was it money for your needs and wants or was it money to help other people? Possibly, your wish is a combination of both. Do your wishes reflect a move toward positive emotions and behaviors more than a move away from negative emotions and behaviors? For example, a wish for greater income could be based on a desire to form a philanthropic organization to help out other people (a desire to foster a positive emotion), or it could be based on a desire to never feel anxiety about financial ruin (a desire to avoid a negative emotion). Once again, your wish may be a combination of both. What did you learn about your goals for well-being?