Are you always sad and full of dissatisfaction? Always someone who is not involved or just an observer? Quiet and lonely instead of cheerful and lively? If so, don't worry, this article was created to help you overcome some of the feelings that are holding you back from reaching your potential for happiness. Read on for more tips and strategies on how to find happiness in life all over again.
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Method 1 of 2: Finding Your Own Happiness
Step 1. Be strong and optimistic
Don't let negative situations and sadness sneak into your life or mess it up. Whenever you're feeling down, try to stay motivated. You have to tell yourself that life is full of expectations, challenges, and unexpected twists and turns.
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Look for the positive side in life. Sometimes something in life will happen that we think is bad. But when we look at it, it turns out that it has a good aspect. That's called the positive side. For example:
- Your partner dumped you. The positive side? There are all kinds of people out there that you can meet. To have the opportunity to know someone, to be allowed into their heart and soul is such a great thing.
- You lost your job. Maybe you don't really like your job. The positive side? Now you have the opportunity to find a better, more meaningful, higher paying position.
- You fail at something when you think you will succeed. Life is so funny, don't you think? The positive side? You learn just as much from failing at something than doing it right the first time.
Step 2. Keep yourself busy
You know what the saying goes about idle hands, right? Research consistently finds that people who stay busy are happier than people who are unemployed. Having too much free time not only stresses you out a bit, it can also make a person unproductive. Think of all the things you can do, like join a club, visit places, listen to lectures, and then think about how little time is given in life just to do these things.
Step 3. Give yourself a reason to smile
Scientists have found that smiling may actually make you happier. That's right: just smile. Try that. Find one of these reasons to smile and give it a try:
- Someone you don't know passes you and smiles.
- Someone does a nice thing for a random stranger.
- Something unexpected happens that makes you think about how vast and foreign the world is.
- You see something beautiful in this world.
Step 4. Follow your instincts
People who follow their instincts can be happier than people who try hard to make their decisions. Here's why: if you stick to your instincts, you'll be less likely to question what other options will look like, feel like, and so on; if you put a lot of effort into your decisions, you'll probably wonder more if you made the mistake of choosing one thing over another.
Step 5. Be generous and compassionate
You may feel smart to think that winning a lottery ticket can make you happy, but you are wrong. Money increases happiness only to a certain level, where your basic needs have been met. After that, money doesn't make you happier than anyone else. But what "really" makes you happy, is love.
A study found that people who see others giving money to charity make us just as happy as receiving money for ourselves! That means you have to find a way to be compassionate if you can. Giving back through charity, volunteering at your local food bank, helping a group of Grade 2 Elementary School kids with their homework, and more
Step 6. Learn to forgive others
Forgiving others is an act of letting go of the past. If you can find it in your heart to forgive others, even people who don't deserve it or people who aren't willing to forgive you, research shows that you will be a happier person.
Forgiving others can make you a happier person by lowering your blood pressure, lowering your overall stress level, and slowing your heart rate
Step 7. Whatever you do, and whoever you are, exercise
Research has found a fairly strong link between exercise and overall happiness. Exercising can increase the endorphins in your body, lowering your overall stress level and making you feel happy.
Step 8. Do things that make “you” happy
Don't do what you think should make you happy, or what makes other people happy; do what makes “you” happy. Get rid of preconceptions about what you should do and go after what you know you can get.
Step 9. Listen to inspiring messages
The world is full of inspiring messages if you know where to look, whether it's reading a book, searching the internet for a quote, or attending an interesting lecture. Here are some inspirational quotes that can keep you motivated to step outside and find what makes you happy:
- “Challenges make life interesting and overcoming them makes life meaningful.” - Joshua J. Marine
- "The best revenge is great success." – Frank Sinatra
- “Nobody ever wrote a plan to be broke, fat, lazy, or stupid. These things happen if you don't have a plan." – Larry Winget
- "It's never too late to become what you previously wanted to be." - George Eliot
Method 2 of 2: Finding Happiness Through Others
Step 1. Join a club or organization that expresses your personality and reflects your interests
Engaging in a community of like-minded people can make a huge difference, whether that interest is bowling, knitting, debating, experimenting, cooking, aviation, sports or games.
If you are there for the first time, introduce yourself. Try not to be shy. Maintain eye contact; try to stay calm. Remind yourself that other people may be just as nervous as you are
Step 2. Ask others for help
Don't be afraid to ask your friends for help. When you do, respect them. As mentioned earlier, people get satisfaction by helping others; this makes them feel useful and successful. Take a guess? People who feel useful and successful are generally happy and fun to work with. That means it will become easier for you to socialize and be yourself around them.
- Ask for help with your homework
- When you get lost, ask for directions
- Ask for help with a project
- Ask for advice on the problems you're having
Step 3. Don't be afraid to share your feelings with others
Holding back all feelings can be difficult: you will feel held back, as if you have no one to share your feelings with. For that reason, it's best to trust others and tell the people you trust about what you're going through. Talking about your problems, with a friend or someone professional, can help you achieve catharsis, a term that means emotional cleansing.
Step 4. Keep other people's secrets
If someone trusts you enough to tell their secret, keep it a secret. That means no gossiping, no accidental leaks, and no siding with one another. Imagine what would happen if you told someone your secret and they accidentally “leaked” it to some people? You will feel hurt and betrayed. Don't make other people feel the same way. Finding happiness is all about keeping your friends close and giving them good reasons to trust you.
Step 5. Keep your promise
Along with the same message: if you say you are going to do something, then do it. Words are just words until you put them into action. Understand that your friends depend on you; Keeping your word will help convince them that you are a man or woman who can keep their word.
What does happiness have to do with keeping promises? Following through on your promises is a way of teaching about trust. You teach your friends to trust you. If you keep promising things you can't do, your friends will stop trusting you. If your friends stop trusting you, you will find that your friends are not very close to you
Step 6. Lean on your friends when you need them
If you're feeling down and need someone to cheer you up, call a friend or two. Find productive and fun ways to keep your mind off the things that are bothering you. Your friends believe in you. They are your friends because they want to see you happy, and because they enjoy spending time with you. Expect them to do as much for you as you will do much for them. Lean on them when you need them.
Step 7. Lean on your family when you need it
Your family loves you unconditionally, even if they don't show it in an obvious way. Your family, first and foremost, cares about your safety and well-being. Furthermore, they want to see you succeed and live a fulfilling life. Even just talking to your family about any problems you may have can make you feel really good.
- Try not to worry about your family judging you; In the end, what they want is that you can find your own happiness. If you're afraid to tell your parents something, find a friend or other family member to share your feelings with.
- You don't have to have a “problem” to talk or hang out with your family. If you can talk to your family about normal, everyday things, it might bring you a lot of happiness. Opening up to your family about your day-to-day life is a big step you can begin to take in your relationship with them.
Step 8. Have a deep talk with someone
A study found that people who engage in deep conversations feel more happy than people who chat about small and trivial things. So the next time you find yourself gossiping about the weather or what Rihanna wore to the Grammys, resist the temptation to talk about a less-than-heavy topic and go for something big and bold. You won't regret it!
Tips
- Don't be afraid to live life for yourself. After all, this is your life!
- Have hope
- We are here to live our own life, not someone else's.
- Have faith
- Realize that you might end up in a bad situation
Warning
- If you become too happy with your life, you may become arrogant and think that you have nothing to lose, learn to control yourself…don't fall into the trap of temptation!!
- Don't get upset if you're bored. It's better to be temporarily bored than to be in pain or suffering, right?
