“Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come, whispering, ‘It will be happier.’”
– Alfred Lord Tennyson

The concept of happiness can seem abstract and unrealistic to many people, like some unsustainable heightened state of euphoria, and to others it’s a distant goal on the ‘to do’ list to be achieved one day. However, it doesn’t have to be either of these extremes.

Simply put, happiness is a general state of well being, resulting from care in specific areas.

Dr. Martin Seligman, director of positive psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, defines happiness as resulting from three key areas:

• Positive emotion and pleasure
• Engagement
• Meaning

Seligman elaborates on the how as “experiencing and savouring pleasures, losing the self in engaging activities, and participating in meaningful activities.” He adds, “Our recent research suggests that people reliably differ according to the type of life that they pursue and, further, that the most satisfied people are those who orient their pursuits toward all three [parts], with the greatest weight carried by engagement and meaning.”

However, our basic needs have to be met to support the areas mentioned by Seligman.

For instance, it’s pretty obvious that if we don’t get enough sleep…well…not feeling so positive or engaged! It’s hard to function mentally, emotionally and physically, let alone feel happy, if we’re exhausted.

In contrast, being well rested, eating foods that support good energy levels (and productivity), feeling connected with loved ones and things meaningful to us supports greater happiness levels.

Basically, our happiness is affected by the efforts we make to achieve a reasonable balance in areas that support good emotional, mental and physical health.

In her research on sustainable happiness, Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky of the University of California found that “intentional behaviors”—actions people engage in regularly—have a significant influence over happiness levels, as follows:

• Behavioral – such as exercising regularly or trying to be kind to others
• Volitional – such as striving for important personal goals or devoting effort to meaningful causes
• Cognitive – such as reframing situations in a more positive light or pausing to count your blessings

The key is to be proactive. Lifting negative moods and creating meaning in your life is essential.

Happiness doesn’t have to be something you chase for some distant day. It’s something you have control over now. Or as Lyubomirsky puts it, “People aren’t genetically destined to experience a predetermined amount of happiness; volitional behaviors do matter; and finding happiness may be as simple as finding the right strategy.”

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