It is ironic how almost everyone says their goal is to be happy yet it seems most of us are nowhere close to enjoying our lives.
That’s not to say we are all wallowing in misery and depression but many people seem more pre-occupied with work, stress and other concerns to feel genuinely happy. Why is that?
For starters, a lot of us mistakenly think that happiness is something external, that it comes from outside ourselves. We think that someone else is responsible for our happiness. The truth is we control our emotions and since happiness is one of our emotions it is under our own control.
Of course other people and events can cause us to feel joy but even then it is how we perceive it that makes us happy.
With that knowledge, why aren’t we happy all the time? Why do we spend more time worrying than simply enjoying the moment? Unfortunately most of us live by schedules and structure and we simply don’t allot enough time for happiness. We put work, careers, possessions and other people ahead of happiness and suffer the consequences.
In order to be happy we all need to make a conscious effort to allow for happiness. This doesn’t mean creating a spreadsheet and configuring when and where we will be at ease enough to enjoy some happy time but it does mean we need to start thinking about the restrictions we put on ourselves.
With all the negativity in the world today (high unemployment, global conflicts, natural disasters, etc.) many people actually feel ashamed to be happy. It is as if we don’t believe we have the right to feel good. Well, positivity can be contagious and your smile can brighten up someone’s day enough that they do the same to someone else.
Instead of waiting for someone or something to make you happy, take a moment and say to yourself, “I’m going to allow myself happiness and I won’t feel guilty about it”. It may sound silly but that’s a good thing. Tell yourself it’s OK to feel good and that happiness is a choice we can all make.