Can you find happiness?
Do you have the key to keep happiness once you find it?
Happiness is a capability that begins at birth. It’s easy to make a baby smile, isn’t it? A few goos, some head-ducking peak-a-boos and they’re a diaper-full of giggles.
Remember the happy times when you were younger?
“Sure,” you sigh wistfully as you recall those care-free days of rainbows and sunshine. “As a kid… it was easy.”
Those were the days, right?
But let’s be honest. We’re you ALWAYS happy as a kid? Weren’t there down times too? A visit to the Principal’s office maybe? No new bike? Family problems that had nothing to do with you?
Stay with me because there are four facts about happiness that you need to know right now.
If you want to be happy that is.
1. Happiness is a condition that can be interrupted.
It’s like the stock market. Sometimes it surges. Sometimes it drops. Sometimes its predictable. Sometimes its not.
Not to be Debbie Downer or anything, but here’s the bottom line.
Stuff happens, as in Forest Gump. Plus, people grow old and die. People we love. That means there will be moments when being happy is impossible. Or just plain wrong.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t maintain 90/10 happiness level most of the time.
Cause you can.
2. If you keep happiness out of reach, that’s where it’ll stay.
You can’t find peace and happiness if you’re always wanting more.
If I could just get that promotion…find the right guy…arrange that next amazing vacation… secure that special job…get that raise, house, yacht, car, ring, dress … you fill in the blanks.
Celebrate your accomplishments and be in the moment.
Stay balanced!
Recognize the blessings you take for granted.
3. Happiness can’t be bought.
It’s not a physical commodity. It’s a state of mind.
Great news! This means its affordable for everyone.
Examine the evidence. Do wealthy people look like they have the key to lasting bliss? Even after mountains of accomplishments?
And all those actors and musicians with fame, fortune, and success in Hollywood. Happiness can be as elusive to them as it is for anyone else.
Why is that?
An ancient King, who was the wisest and wealthiest men of his generation, gives the answer. The statement is 2000 years old and yet, it still applies today. King Solomon at Eccl. 5:10.
“One who loves money will not get his fill of money nor
Whoever loves affluence, of income; this too is nonsense.”
4. If you want lasting happiness, cultivate gratitude, satisfaction, and contentment.
Why? Because dissatisfaction, discontent, and thanklessness suffocate happiness like a silent, lethal gas.
If you learn to nurture gratitude, satisfaction, and contentment, you’ll master more than you can imagine.
Take note of the good things around you instead of focusing on what’s lacking.
Meditate on your abilities, achievements, and dreams. Know that whatever you’re working at will have success, and if it doesn’t…so what? You’re smart enough to learn from disappointments. We mature and become wiser by overcoming failures. They’re the stepping stones to success.
WARNING! Tough Love alert on the subject of gratitude!
There’s ALWAYS room to be thankful, even if you must search to the very basics to find it.
Here’s some starters. Do you have a family? Good health? Someone who loves you? Friends? A job? An adoring pet? A loving God?
Let’s go even deeper. Do you have a place to sleep? Clean water? Food? A refrigerator? A car? Do you live in an area that isn’t in a war zone?
Because there are millions in the world who must survive without the things listed above. Think about that and count a few blessings.
Remember, finding reasons to be happy allows you to be happy.
And because we push positive thinking like a clown pushes bubbles, check out our other happiness articles!
You are so right that happiness comes from within. It’s not about gifts or things in life. It’s about who we are in the inside and how grateful we are for the things we have.
Thanks for your input David. I couldn’t agree more!
I love your comment on how happiness cannot be bought. I watch so many try to buy happiness and it’s sad. Only brings a moment of happiness, but doesn’t fix the underlying issue.
Without a doubt, finding happiness can be easy. Yet, when suffering from depression it’s hard.
Betzy, thanks for your comment. Those are the tough times that we must push through. It’s impossible to be happy ALL the time. You have to work for happiness. It’s a way of life, not a destination. If one thinks otherwise, then it will only add to their depression.
Totally pinning this. I suffer from anxiety and depression and often need reminders like this. I try to live a happy life, but mental health is the devil lol
Oh Erica! You make me happy! I’m so glad you found it useful! Self-help articles can sometimes jolt us back on path. Or least give us the motivation to head in that direction.
I have finally learned to be content with my life. I love the people I am surrounded by and that is all I care about.
Thanks for the comment Cindy! I am glad for you. Hopefully, others will learn to do the same.
I think I have found happiness. My family really pulled in all my loose ends.
Hi Sara! Nothing like a loving support group. That in itself, to be surrounded by those who love you, is a great reason to be happy!
I think our consumer society has taught us to not be content or satisfied. There’s always a new iPhone coming or a new operating system, better car, bigger, better, more satisfying! So we keep looking to ‘tomorrow’ and that’s how we don’t notice today or the happiness that attends some of our current moments.
I agree one hundred percent Debrah. Thanks for the wise comment.. I’m following you!