Happiness is one of the, if not the least understood human emotions.
Seriously, have you ever really answered the question: What makes you happy?
I don’t mean what makes you have fun, but I mean what makes you truly, deeply and spiritually happy?
Tough Question, Right?
Well, it’s probably different for everyone, but I can help you build a clearer picture of what truly makes you happy so that you can spend your time exactly where you need to!
Remember, we’ve got limited time on this wonderful planet, so we’ve got to make the most of it!
Now, there are a few steps you can take to undergo the introspection and personal development you have to go through to find out what makes you happy…
But before that, let’s talk a little bit about happiness itself.
What Is Happiness?
On a deeper level, happiness is much harder to explain than other emotions. In a sense, it might be because happiness is a blanket term that covers everything from being joyful to blissful and at peace… But it’s much more than that!
Although, at its core, every emotion (happiness included) is the result of a chemical reaction in our brains, right?
So, why is it so difficult to explain happiness? The truth is, I firmly believe that happiness in and of itself is not an emotion.
Read More: The 3 Secrets of a Healthy Work-Life Balance
Instead, happiness is a state of mind that’s the result and culmination of other emotions and life events combined.
In other words, the secret to what makes you happy lies in much more than a simple chemical reaction.
Happiness transcends chemicals, it’s got a definite impact on not just our minds, but our inner, spiritual selves.
It’s incredible when you think about it!
With all that being said, there’s a serious distinction you have to make here.
Despite happiness being a state of mind resulting from other factors, you have to consider whether those factors are internal or external.
What Makes You Happy? Internal Or External Factors?
Let’s start by explaining the difference between an internal factor and an external factor.
Internal factors are those that are completely independent of everything that happens outside of your “self.” For instance, being an optimist (or pessimist) is an internal factor, completely independent of the environment.
External factors, on the other hand, are what you surround yourself with. The people, places, things, etc around you all contribute in one way or another to your state of mind.
Read More: 8 Ways To Stay Happy When The Sky Is Falling?
So internal factors are what happens in your mindset and external factors are your environment and surroundings. But… Which is more important?
Well, to be honest, internal factors matter more, but are harder to make changes to.
It’s not impossible by any stretch of the imagination but it’s tough!
On the other hand, external factors are less impactful but much easier to change.
Now, we’ve gone over internal and external factors, it’s time to dig into how you can discover what you can do to make them build up your happiness!
Discovering What Makes You Happy
So happiness, being so difficult to understand, can be equally difficult to find…
But the good news is it doesn’t have to be this way at all!
Before we get to the really good stuff, let me tell you that discovering what makes you happy is not easy, unless you know how.
What you’ve got to do is release the desire to find what makes you happy to begin with…
Wait! What?
I know, it sounds ridiculous, isn’t that why you’re here to begin with?
But trust me, holding on to the need to discover what makes you happy is stopping you from being happy in the first place.
Remember, happiness is a state of mind.
If you can release the need to discover what makes you happy, it becomes way easier to actually be happy.
Now I know this doesn’t make much sense at first glance, but there’s a reason trying to find what makes you happy stops you from entering that very state of mind.
Read More: 7 Reasons Why You Should Forgive and Forget
That reason is that, in essence, happiness doesn’t really have a cause.
It’s the state of mind resulting from your internal and external wellness.
In reality, what makes you happy is, well, yourself!
You can change your external factors, and that does help. For example, if one of your friends is constantly bringing you down, it might be time to reconsider your friendship… It’s amazing how much you can increase your motivation and wellness by changing your environment.
As for internal factors, through meditation and mindfulness, you can change those too!
It takes practice and perseverance, but it is very much possible and probably not as hard as you might think.
If you can change your mindset from that of a pessimist to an optimist, your life will become almost instantaneously better.
So… Is what makes you happy just having positive internal factors and external factors? Well, not exactly, there’s a secret ingredient.
The Secret Ingredient
Even if you take steps to improve yourself and your surroundings, you might not achieve that ever-important state of true, deep and meaningful happiness… Because you’re missing that last part, it has to be meaningful!
Read More: What is Your Emotional State Right Now?
Your life has to have some sort of meaning, you have to be fulfilling something worthy of your life.
It’s a little hard to explain… But the secret ingredient is to be successful, as Earl Nightingale put it:
“Success is really nothing more than the progressive realization of a worthy ideal. This means that any person who knows what they are doing and where they are going is a success. Any person with a goal towards which they are working is a successful person.“
-Earl Nightingale
Remember, we’ve all got limited time on this wonderful Earth, you deserve to spend your time in a blissful state of happiness. Make the most of it!
Much Luv,
Xoxo,
Zane
P.S. Whatever course of action you choose to take, I think you’ll greatly benefit from my FREE Grateful Morning meditation! Remember- gratitude is one of the BEST states of mind to be in, and it takes less than 10 minutes a day!
Facebook Comments