Happiness

Happiness, in any age, is widespread. This spirit comes in many forms, and many will personalise this to fit their own lives. But truthfully, do the same people who claim they are happy, truly understand what happiness is? Is it really true happiness, or are they only living in denial? As I quote from a wise man,“The happiest people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything they have.” Of all the fragments that make up life, happiness is one without bias. Everybody from every corner of the world can experience equal happiness in different ways. Majority will agree that the first step to eternal happiness is removing negativity. We ought to eradicate all negative elements in our lives, - be it a person, an object or a memory. Having negative components in our lives would affect our lives adversely and would alter our perspectives on certain things.

It is rather difficult to tell if one is truly happy when seen exteriorly as they can conceal their real emotions inside. Sure enough, most of us have taken online quizzes to seek answers that we cannot find in ourselves. No need to be embarrassed! These quizzes are deliberately created to cater society’s curiosity. However, we cannot build our life solely based on the results printed on the computer screen. We must think, - are the results concluded in the end of the quiz, accurate or validated? 

While some turn to online solutions, others may opt to seek professional help outside. Dr Martin Seligman, a pioneer of Positive Psychology, scientifically explores the definition of happiness. He has concluded that happiness has three dimensions: the Pleasant Life, the Good Life and the Meaningful Life. According to his conclusion, the Pleasant Life is when we learn to relish and value basic pleasures such as companionship, the natural environment and our human needs. We can either remain in this phase or move on to the Good Life. Here, the Good Life is achieved through discovering distinctive values and strengths, and then applying them to enhance our lives. 

As stated from modern theories of self-esteem, life is only genuinely fulfilling if we uncover values within ourselves. Nonetheless, one of the best ways of finding these values are by nurturing our unique strengths in contributing to the happiness of mankind. Of course, the final stage is the Meaningful Life, in which we find a deep sense of contentment by using our strengths for a cause greater than ourselves. 

All of these informations and facts will be worthless if we don’t realise how happy or unhappy we are now. We should all strive to be happier. As I quote from the movie, Divergent, “I want to be brave, and selfless, and smart, and kind, and honest.” The quote holds a powerful impact as it closely reflects upon the personality of a genuinely happy person. An extract from C. JoyBell C. clearly depicts life in a more metaphorical outlook, “Life is a bowl of cherries. Some cherries are rotten while others are good; it’s your job to throw out the rotten ones and forget about them while you enjoy eating the ones that are good! There are two kinds of people: those who choose to throw out all the good cherries and wallow in all the rotten ones and those who choose to throw out all the rotten ones and savour all the good ones.”Happiness is by choice, not chance. So from today, let us all be wiser in choosing decisions for the best of ourselves.