Happiness - 'An Inside Job'

by - Kritika

Now, this is one word that is losing its spark and meaning nowadays. And we live in such a world that to be happy 24×7 seems an impossible job because there are too many factors that influence and alter our happiness but even with few obstacles if you were happy for the majority part of the day, then that is a win right? And we all heard about the "happy place", while nowadays imagining a beach or meadow in a stressful situation doesn't seem practical but we can modify happy place into a happy bubble, meaning to be mindful of the situation and to react in such a way that it's doesn't affect us and others around us much.

It's not another; do this or that for happiness article, there are plenty of good ones out there and each Homosapien is wired in a different way, & here we are going to look into major causes of happiness based on this era's observation. Once you identify your causes and then start working towards it a little bit, to be more efficient.

The major misconception is: ‘Monotonous life is an unhappy life’. In fact, change your perspectives that monotonous life is a stable life, a man is a creature of habit, and habits are formed to accomplish the task. Its a matter of what you can add to the monotonous life that would make your day better. Take time to reflect and think about it. It could be a 10 minutes’ walk, 5 minutes with your favorite book, a cup of coffee or a favorite song or maybe catching up with your favorite people or it also can be being outside with nature for few minutes or few minutes of me-time. Whatever ignites that spark within you; do it daily, and don't just go through the moment, savor it for few minutes without thinking of past or future and just breathe in and out.

At end of a busy day, creating a to-do list and accomplished tasks do provide a good dopamine boost and so does the fact of working toward a goal so set a good long term goal and break it on a daily basis. And another thing is about associating happiness with people or things. You are simply giving away the power of YOUR happiness to OTHER people and there no guarantee that it wouldn’t end in disappointments but why take the risk?

If people are preventing happiness, you can't change people you can only change yourself. Put yourself in their shoes and understand that most people are dealing with their issues too, it isn't ideal to expect everything from another human being. Everything is not meant to be taken personally. Just appreciate your family and friends fully and be grateful for them.

And what is the point of postponing happiness like you would be happy when you get this or that, why not carpe diem (seize the day). There is no right or wrong time to choose your daily dose of happiness.

Groove to your favorite song or run a mile or just walk or hit the gym or workout or just get on your feet. It's no joke that exercise is a major advantage and there is a list of things to choose, simply just don't stay immobile for too long.

Reduce your daily negative emotions, & being overly critical of yourself, that is simply a waste of energy and time and as well as your mood. Anger, worries, stress, anxiety, irritation all are the nemesis of happiness. Find a way to deal and reduce it greatly.

Take a moment and look back at your happiest moment, do you remember bothering about little flaws and lack of things or being over conscious of the situation. No, you were just being in the moment not bothering even about space or time and just in at a relaxed state. Why can't we do that more often instead of being critical or complaining or being anxious about what you have to lose anyway?

Last but not the least; there are plenty of positive practices to do instead of expectations which itself results in disappointments. Gratitude, praying, meditation, savoring the past happy moment, hope, looking forward to a new day. It may seem cliché but its cliché because it actually works, various research vouch for the fact that simple act of remembering 3 good things of the day before going to bed actually was a great boost in long term happiness.

You are given a limited period of time on this planet and even though life may give you 10 reasons for disappointments; find that 1 reason for happiness and hold on to it. What is the meaning of life if it can't be experienced and enjoyed or at least spent in a good way?

Remember happiness is not a destination but a journey and some days would be less rightful than others but you can't understand and Value happiness if you never experienced sadness. And like our favorite Harry Potter character quotes "Happiness can be found even in the darkest hour of time if one remembers to turn on the light". Have a marvelous day.