Happiness…What If It’s Just a Choice? (The Echo World, March 2018)
It seems to me that we are often so committed to pursuing happiness that we forget, or miss entirely, that it’s not actually a thing that can be caught or obtained through effort. What? Wait a minute…What about all the people who are expecting to be happy once they retire? What about all the advertising that seems to assure us that if we use their products we will be happy?
Think about it. Have you ever known anyone who was truly unhappy during their working years who magically became happy on the day they retired? Have you ever felt truly unhappy, purchased and used a particular product and then felt happy, not just for a moment, but from that time forward? Probably not.
There are over 10,000 books written about happiness and yet there are relatively few people on this planet who would say they are as happy as they’d like to be. The closest most people get is to be as happy as they think they can be.
What if you could be happy? How would your life change? How would our world change? Research shows that authentically happy people are generally more creative, more collaborative, more altruistic, physically healthier, and more successful both at work and in their personal life.
In fact, you can be. Positive psychologists the world over have come to understand that while we each may have a default level of happiness above or below the norm, we can all increase our happiness through choice and simple exercises such as:
- Kindness – whether the recipients know or not, when we do a kindness – be that opening a door or saving a life – our happiness increases.
- Gratitude – taking a moment at the end of the day to note things and experiences you are grateful for or thanking people in person or by phone or letter for specific efforts that made a difference in your life. A special note on gratitude: have you ever noticed that it is impossible to judge who/what you are grateful for? Think of a person who is a challenge for you…now think of something about them you are grateful for. Try bringing that gratitude to mind, even speaking it to them, when you need to have an interaction with them. See what changes in how you feel and how productive your interaction is.
- Cultivate Optimism – look on the brights side; notice what’s right (rather than wrong); imagine, write and/or talk about your best possible self.
These are but a few of many choices you can make to increase your authentic happiness. They don’t cost a penny and are available to everyone, regardless of their life circumstances.
Happiness has been recognized to have such substantial benefits that governments, businesses, schools, even the U.S. Army, are instituting programs to promote authentic happiness for all. In 2012 The United Nations declared March 20 as the International Day of Happiness (www.happinessday.org). Won’t you join me in choosing Happiness?