The search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness. Eric Hoffer

The Secret to Happiness

Are you happy?

If someone asks you that question right now, what would be your answer?

Better yet, let me rephrase the question.

What is happiness for you?

There are lots of self-help books about finding that secret to happiness in the market these days. Different titles, different authors, but with the same goal. That only explains one thing. In this generation where everything made easy and advanced with the help of technology, people are getting miserable. We are pressured to cope up with the changing world, so we set our eyes up to the things we thought mattered more.

I work hard, earn money, buy all the things I need and want. I consider myself successful, yet why does it feel like something is still missing?

At one time in our lives, we all ask ourselves the same question. It is frustrating knowing you have the things others only wish for, yet they seem to be not enough. So we look for it in other ways. Some people look for it by drinking alcohol, others look for it by partying hard. Some people seek for that missing piece by sleeping around, while others do it by taking drugs. Still, none of those things can fulfil that void.

True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose. Helen Keller

You can never attain the true meaning of happiness if you chase after it. Let happiness find you. Like what Charles Dickens said, “Happiness is a gift and the trick is not to expect it but to delight in it when it comes.” Once you do that, that’s’ when you feel the change.

One of the reasons why we are miserable is because of how often we subject ourselves to the standard set by society. Living our lives always wanting to be right in the eyes of other people is not living at all. Learn to be one with yourself. Accept the person that you are, until then, you will never feel that sense of peacefulness and contentment from deep within.

True happiness arises, in the first place, from the enjoyment of one’s self. Joseph Addison

The secret to happiness is simple. If you want to be truly happy, shift your attention away from chasing it. Instead, find joy in living your life each day. Focus on being one with yourself, and building a closer relationship with the people you love. It is in the little things that you’ll find the true meaning of happiness.