What makes us happy

"The science of happiness", "what makes us happy", "7 steps on how to be happy"…it seems that as of late finding true happiness has become the topic of books, podcasts, webinars. I started to get FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out!) and wondered if I was being intentional enough to find my own happiness.

Last week, I was inspired by my friend’s, Guadalupe Hirt post in her Middlescent newsletter (totally recommended!) on ways to prioritize you in your life. The last phrase in the article impacted me the most and took me back to the topic of happiness: “No matter who says what, you are exactly where you are supposed to be, right now, in this moment. Live your life on your terms, and don’t settle for being a version of someone else’s life.?You got this!”

After mulling this over, I realized that if I have prioritized something in my life is the decision of what makes me happy; it took me a while, but I got there. It's true that we don't always know what will make us happy, but often we can become confused by the influence of others. Yet, we have the power of following our own joy, no matter what anyone else thinks.

With the purpose of being intentional, I then reflected on what is one of my sources of happiness and decided that for me, it comes from the gift of giving – doing good deeds as I see them unfold to make other people’s lives better and in turn, one by one, make the world a better place. Although this is a gift for which I have been criticized many times – seeing the world through “rose colored glasses” - it is a criticism I choose to ignore…going back to Lupe’s article: “Live your life on your terms, and don’t settle for being a version of someone else’s life”.

What do we get from giving? We won’t be richer; there will be no TV appearances; we won’t become an instant social media sensation; certainly, there will be no public recognition. But you will get something better…emotions.

Helping others brings good feelings to you and the person who receives. It generates a series of emotions like love; understanding; awareness; possibility; the joy of giving others happiness; the love money can’t buy but which will fill your cup always; observe the domino effect that giving generously will always generate; and my all-time favorite, hope…we all have a story to tell, and one small gesture can change the direction of that story.

As you seek your own sources of happiness, be wise on how you pick what makes you happy; wealth is not always measured by the money you have in your bank but rather how overflowed is your cup when one small action has marked someone for good.

Books, podcasts and webinars are great but don't over think- you usually don’t have to look too far to find your own secret sauce to what truly matters.