Most people spend the majority of their life searching for happiness. Even as most of us know, you can’t buy happiness; we continue to try over and over again. Why do we do this? One reason may be because the alternative, finding happiness within ourselves, is hard work and buying that new Hi-Def LCD is so much easier.
Instead of asking yourself how to find happiness, start asking the question, how do I find myself? This has nothing to do with finding yourself physically—obviously—but about finding what makes you truly happy inside. Many times, the feeling of unhappiness is a response to the idea that we’re not living up to our full potential. Many of us have this “ideal” self inside that we strive to be, but many times we fall short. If that sounds like you, it’s time to take a closer look at what you’re ideal self looks like.
Think about how difficult it is Christmas shopping for a friend or family member you don’t really know that well. Suddenly you discover that you really don’t know what makes them happy. This same concept applies to yourself and knowing what makes you happy. When thinking about your ideal self, think about simple things that make you happy such as spending time with friends. These things will help you determine the root of what makes you happy.
Make sure you’re ideal self is realistic and achievable, if not you’re only setting yourself up for failure. Setting realistic goals starts with simple ideas of what you believe you want from yourself. Maybe you want to be more altruistic or a better friend. If that’s the case, set some goals to pay more attention to your friends when they’re talking or take the time to get to know what they really like.
If you find yourself asking the question how to find happiness in life, start by discovering what makes you happy inside and the rest will take care of itself.
