If you’re like many of us, you may feel a bit lost, or unfulfilled, at least from time to time. You may be successful in your career or personal life, but still feel like that there is something missing. Something that would take your life satisfaction to the next level. It’s hard to put your finger on it. In fact, you can spend hours wondering how to truly find out what makes you happy.
There is a cliche that states that happiness is not a destination, it’s a journey. It’s trite but true.
Nevertheless, there are things we can each do to help brighten our journey in ways that are especially fulfilling to us, personally. Read on to learn about simple, effective ways to find out what makes us happy and boost our mood and overall well-being.
How to Find Out What Makes You Happy
Before we explore how to find out what makes us happy, let’s define happiness.
According to the science, happiness is a state of mind that is characterized by positive emotions such as joy, contentment, and satisfaction.
Research shows that happiness comes from within and is influenced by a combination of factors such as genetics, environment, and personal choices.
We have the power to increase happiness by making conscious choices and taking actions that align with our values and desires.
There are two types of happiness. One of them is fleeting, such as the temporary elation we feel when enjoying a specific experience or outing.
Today, we will focus on the OTHER form of happiness.
This type of happiness, known as eudaimonic happiness, comes from a deeper, more steady and consistent experience of life satisfaction.
This type of happiness is not something that can be bought or achieved through external factors such as material possessions or status.
1. Reflect on Values and Passions
The first step in finding out what will make us, personally, truly happier is to reflect on our values and passions.
Our values are the principles that guide our behavior and decision-making.
They are the things that are most important to us in life, such as family, health, creativity, or spirituality.
Our passions are the activities or hobbies that bring us joy and excitement.
They are the things that we love to do and would do even if we weren’t paid for it.
Things that we find intrinsically motivating.
By reflecting on what we are passionate about and how to can incorporate more of those activities into our daily life, we can begin to better understand what makes us happy.
We should also try to identify any activities that are inconsistent with our core values.
To the extent possible, we must remove these from our lives.
Sometimes eliminating a negative can be even more impactful than adding a positive.
2. Identify Strengths and Weaknesses
Another important step in finding out what may make us happier is to identify our strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths are the skills and abilities that come naturally to us and that we enjoy doing.
Weaknesses are the areas where we struggle or feel less confident.
By focusing on our strengths and incorporating them into our work or personal life, we can increase our level of happiness and fulfillment.
On the other hand, by identifying our weaknesses, we can work on improving those areas or finding ways to delegate those tasks to others.
3. Try New Things to Find Out What Makes You Happy
Another way to find out what makes us happy is to experiment and try new things.
This can help us discover new hobbies, interests, and experiences that bring joy and happiness.
It’s healthy to challenge ourselves. To step outside of our comfort zone and try something new every week, whether it’s a new hobby, a new restaurant, or a new travel destination.
This helps us broaden our horizons.
It may also enable us to meet new people, which is a positive experience for many reasons.
For one, it broadens our perspectives on life.
For another, it helps us to become more compassionate and empathetic.
Experiencing compassion and empathy naturally boosts our happiness and well-being.
4. Surround Yourself with Positive People
Another way to find out what makes us happy is to interact with other people who share our interests.
Humans are social creatures, and research has shown that connecting with others can have a positive impact on our mental health.
Whether it’s spending time with friends or family, joining a social club or volunteering, any effort to build meaningful connections with others is beneficial to our overall well-being.
So, we must do our best to surround ourselves with positive people who support and encourage us.
Seek out friends, family members, or colleagues who share our values and passions and who inspire us to be our best self.
Negative people can drain our energy and make it harder to find happiness and fulfillment.
We all have to deal with negative or difficult people occasionally, but to the extent we can, it pays to avoid them.
5. Practice Gratitude to Find Out What Makes You Happy
Taking a moment each day to reflect on what we’re grateful for, helps us to understand our personal happiness better.
Whether it’s something small like a warm cup of coffee or something big like the health of our family, consciously identifying the things we’re grateful for is good for us.
Studies have shown that practicing gratitude can increase happiness and well-being.
Jon Gordon does a particularly effective job of describing gratitude strategies, in his new book, soon to be released: The One Truth.
I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy to review before publication, and I can tell you, it’s definitely worth the read.
The One Truth will be published later this month. In the meantime, you can reserve a copy, if you would like to do so.
6. Meditate to Find Out What Makes You Happy
Meditation is a simple yet powerful way to reduce stress and increase happiness. Spend a few minutes each day in quiet meditation, focusing on your breath or a calming visualization.
Meditation can help us to gain clarity around our priorities and what’s truly important to us in life.
Getting straight on our personal values and passions can make all the difference.
7. Get Moving and Get Outside
Exercise releases endorphins, which are natural feel-good chemicals in the brain.
Whether it’s going for a walk, hitting the gym, or trying a new fitness class, it’s very healthy to find an activity we enjoy and make it a regular part of our routine.
Spending time in nature has been shown to reduce stress and increase well-being.
We can take a walk in the park, go for a hike, or simply sit outside and enjoy the fresh air.
Sunlight brings its own set of benefits, so we need to do our best to get outside on sunny days and get a bonus boost.
8. Be Kind to Yourself to Find Out What Makes You Happy
In our busy lives, it can be easy to forget to take care of ourselves.
We must make time and prioritize activities we enjoy, whether it’s reading a book, taking a bath, or simply relaxing with a cup of tea.
Let’s also be kind to ourselves and treat ourselves with the same compassion and understanding that we would offer to a friend.
Remember that it’s okay to make mistakes, and that self-care is an important part of overall well-being.
9. Journal to Find Out What Makes You Happy
Journalling is always a good thing. It can help us process emotions and feelings, and even identify patterns in our own behaviors and relationships.
Reaching clarity around our own personal priorities and passions helps us align our activities, our careers, our community involvement, around things that we truly care about.
The more time we spend involved in activities that we are truly passionate about, the happier we become.
Think about the last time you lost track of time. What were you doing? Who were you with?
Chances are, you were in a state of flow, and flow is believed to be critical to achieving happiness.
Journal about the experience and figure out how to get more of it in your life!
How To Find Out What Makes You Happy
Remember that getting in tune with that which makes us happy requires conscious effort and self-awareness. This form of self-discovery is a lifelong process, and one that will help us to continually evolve, improve and thrive.
Thank you as always for reading.
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Joan Senio is the founder of KindCompassCoach. Her career includes 20+ years as a health care executive and 15 years (and counting) as a consultant. The common thread through Joan’s professional life has been a commitment to lead, mentor and coach current and future leaders, and women from all walks of life. KindCompassCoach provides information and advice grounded in Joan’s personal experience; however, all articles are backed by research and provide facts and advice from a wide variety of experts. Joan also serves as a thought-leader for KuelLife.com and is a regular contributor to PsychReg and Sixty and Me.
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