Purpose Of Life: 10 Simple Steps To Happiness

Whenever you hit a milestone birthday or experience a life event such as the illness or death of a loved one, it often spurs the questions, “What’s the purpose of life?” and shortly thereafter, “Am I living it?” While the answers might be different for each of us, I believe it starts with being happy. First, being happy with yourself and then spreading happiness to others around you. The ripple of happiness that starts with you can eventually emanate into the world. 

Be happy

What does it mean to be happy?

Martin Seligman, the founder of positive psychology, used the scientific method and surveys to discover what it means to be happy. He found when people leveraged their “signature strengths,” they were the most satisfied and upbeat. Ultimately, Seligman concluded that happiness has three dimensions: the Pleasant Life, the Good Life, and the Meaningful Life.

Pleasant Life: To achieve the Pleasant Life, people must think constructively about the past using gratitude and forgiveness and be optimistic and hopeful for the future. This results in greater happiness in the present.

Good Life: Good character is consistently and strongly linked to enduring happiness and can be cultivated by embodying key virtues and strengths. In his research, Seligman found six core virtues that were valued in nearly every culture:

1. Wisdom and knowledge
2. Courage
3. Love and humanity
4. Justice
5. Temperance
6. Spirituality and transcendence

In Seligman’s work, strengths are “moral traits that can be developed, learned and take effort.” While there are no shortcuts to happiness, a concerted effort at cultivating a good character will help you achieve the good life.

Meaningful Life: Seligman’s third dimension of happiness, as described in his book, Authentic Happiness, is achieved when you “Use your signature strengths and virtues in the service of something much larger than you are.”

Adversity is good

If you are happy, it doesn’t mean you have been spared difficulties and hardships in your life. In fact, according to Lowri Dowthwaite, a psychologist at the University of Central Lancashire, hardship can make our lives worthwhile. It is unrealistic to expect that we can ever achieve happiness all the time. Adversity is good for us because it can make us more resilient, lead us to action and make us more accepting of the ups and downs in life.

How to be happy

1. Embrace the ups and downs

Be grateful for all experiences in life—the good and the bad. They all bind together to create your own unique journey in this life.

2.           Stop comparing yourself to others

Focus on living YOUR life. True happiness is not about besting someone else or living life the way they do, it’s about discovering and living your truth.

3.           Face challenges

Difficult tasks and setting goals and working through the tension to achieve them help you find happiness.

4.           Focus on people and experiences, not things

Contrary to popular belief, winning the lottery won’t buy you happiness. But, being present with loved ones and experiencing simple pleasures such as listening to the ocean’s waves, taking a moment to appreciate a sunset or learning something new are things that bolster happiness.

5.           Work on your positive self-image

When you feel better about yourself, you are in a better place to exude happiness to others. Every day, be mindful of your positive qualities and strengths. When you learn how to feel better about yourself, it helps position you to be better for others you encounter.

6.           Be grateful

Develop an attitude of gratitude for even the littlest things—positive and negative. There’s always something to be grateful for.

7.           Spread kindness

Random acts of kindness as simple as giving others a smile can boost your own happiness. Don’t believe me? Just try it out today and let me know how you feel.

8.           Impact the next generation

Whether you’re a parent or not, giving your talents to help a child live a better life, learn a new skill or just being there with a smile can have an extraordinary impact.

9.           Find meaningful work

Look for the meaning in your work. Every job has value even if all jobs aren’t seen as saving the world. However, if you want to find a new career that has a larger impact, take a step today to get closer to a transition.

10.         Know you are in control

Being happy is not reserved for a select few; it’s attainable for everyone. If you aren’t as happy as you want to be, you can change that. It’s all in your control.

I would love to hear from you. What do you believe is the purpose of life? How do you work toward happiness each day?

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