Finding, Creating, and Nurturing Happiness

Does happiness come spontaneously, or can it be created? Studies on the subject have shown that there is actually a science behind happiness. The best news about the research is that the studies also reveal that individuals have the power to create and embrace their own happiness.

There are things in life that bring happiness. What those things are depends upon the individual. Once a person examines what things cause them to be happy, or not, they can begin to put together a plan for happiness.

Happiness can be found in many places. It can stem from being around certain people, like friends and family. It can also come from taking part in activities such as sports, art, reading, writing, or exercise. The bottom line is that doing what you enjoy can bring you joy.

A person’s attitude about activities, relationships, and places can promote happiness, or can decrease or diminish it. Someone who loves to go to the lake, but doesn’t enjoy it one day because they are in a bad mood, is affected by their attitude. On the flip side, a person who doesn’t like exercising can consciously make a decision to find the benefits in the activity in order to bring about a change of heart. They can purposefully make a choice to find happiness through exercising and the results it produces.

Happiness is a state of being. It is not only influenced by a decision, it is birthed and nurtured by things we choose to be involved in. If knitting is something that brings you joy, you can create happiness by choosing to knit.

We can also avoid happiness. Sometimes, like when we are in a negative mood, we purposefully don’t do the things we like to do. Or, when a situation arises that prevents us from doing the activities we enjoy, we become irritated, sad, or feel worthless. That’s because we are missing that which makes us feel fulfilled. At that point, we can still be happy by either finding a way to get around the issue that is preventing us from doing what we love, or may choose to be happy for other reasons.

Social interaction is a huge influencer of happiness. When people get depressed, they often shy away from being around others. That brings them even further down into their depressive hole. Why? Because being around others who are happy, joyful, and connecting is contagious. We are emotionally drawn to happy people and can glean on their overflowing joy. We are also likely to forget, even temporarily, about our woes when we are around upbeat people.

Happiness is a choice in that there are things we can do and people we can expose ourselves to in order to lift our spirits and experience joy. By seeking joy, we find it. It is a powerful tool humans possess to be able to change the destiny of a day...or a lifetime, simply by deciding to be happy and to do whatever is required in order to be happy.