What makes you happy?
This seems like an easy question. But is it really? Do you know what makes you happy? Are you fully aware of it? Do you make sure that you regularly practice the activities that increase your happiness?
We often get caught up in the flow of life, letting ourselves slide along with the opportunities. For many, we try to achieve what society has sold us as the recipe for happiness. This often means having a satisfying and well-paid job, being in a couple, having children, a house and a dog. It’s pretty cliché, isn’t it? And I’m not going to lie to you, except for the dog maybe (I’m more of a cat person), it’s also part of what I would like to achieve in the long run. But in my opinion it’s too risky to wait to have all this to be happy. What happens in the meantime? Are we doomed to be pretty unhappy until we achieve our long-term goals? I hope not.
“It’s a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy.” Lucille Ball
Take a breath and without thinking, give 3 things that would make you feel in a better mood, right now. No restrictions, just think of what would make you smile if you did it right now.
It can be any number of things. From small things to big things. For example, drinking a nice hot tea, taking a bath, meeting friends for dinner, a sympathetic ear to listen to you, a nice break in a project, a moment of rest or a nap.
Did you find them easily given your current state of mind? Do these activities always make you happier or only when you are in a specific state of mind?
Let’s move on to a more challenging exercise. List 10 things that make you happy in general. It can be a moment when you are in a particular state of mind or an activity. The goal is to put only items that are possible right now to anchor the idea of happiness today, without too much planning or scheduling. We no longer make our happiness depend on our goals. They can reinforce it but they act as a bonus and not as the beginning.
For example, here is my list:
- Meeting my family for lunch
- Doing a sports session where I feel I have given my all
- Taking time to read
- Baking
- Cooking with my lover
- Catching up on classic movies
- Making progress on my personal projects
- Writing
- Feeling in control of a subject at work
- Taking care of my plants
You see, nothing extravagant! Just an accumulation of little things that boost me on a daily basis. For me, happiness is really accessible to everyone. You have to know how to recognize it and appreciate it at its true value when it starts to show its face.
Happiness must be maintained and worked on. If you do nothing, nothing will happen. Happiness is often not found by staying at home doing nothing, unless that is what you really want.
Take time to get to know yourself. Take a break from your daily routine and ask yourself if any of the activities you’ve done in the past few days have made you feel comfortable, calm or energized.
To help you see this more clearly, ask yourself these questions:
- Did you enjoy yourself?
- Do you want to do it again?
- Did you feel like stopping or leaving before the end of your allotted time?
- What are the ⅔ feelings you can put in front of it?
The activities or states of mind that you took pleasure in or felt good about, that you want to return to regularly, and that you want to spend time on are the ones that make you happiest.
Next, you need to identify what else you can do. What are the activities that you don’t do often enough even though they make you feel good?
What would make you feel more fulfilled? Take a few minutes every day or a few minutes once a week to set up new routines.
Finally, become fully aware of your happiness. Your goals help you grow. Your daily activities allow you to be happy. Enjoy it and live it to the fullest.
