We are so busy trying to make everyone else in our lives happy that we often forget to make ourselves happy, putting our friends or families well being before our own.
It’s normal to not be happy all the time by the way, we do and will continue to question our own happiness over and over in our lifetime. Happiness is a journey not a destination and life wouldn’t be what it is without its ups and downs but that doesn’t mean we still can’t seek out happiness for the most part of the journey. The word happiness means “the state of being happy” if you look up the meaning you will find comments like ‘the opposite of sadness’ or joy and contentment however i believe happiness derives from your internal power.
Over the last few years the world has taken a turn for all of us and if we sit back and really think on all the things that have happened and where life is right now it’s so easy to start questioning what we want from life and our own self.
There’s a feeling that has no name but could be described as a similar feeling to euphoria, it can come to you at a time when you least expect it. You could be walking home from a long day at work and a feeling of a happiness bubble starts rising from inside you and you can’t stop smiling.
Adrenaline might rush through you for a few seconds and then fades without a come down, you might smell freshly baked apple pie or freshly cut grass and it makes you remember something from when you were little that sparks joy inside you.
These moments are defining and need to be savoured for they will remind you that your path is the one you can choose. You might be in an unhappy marriage contemplating divorce, in a job that pays you well but leaves you up at night anxious or in an apartment that has no direct sunlight and feels small.
You only get one lifetime that we know of and more than anything you want to live it happily because at the end of the day what good is money or sex or a thin body if you aren’t happy. You have to rely on yourself to give you happiness and take control of it.
Ways to look after your own happiness:
Treat yourself like a friend – when you are feeling negative about yourself or your path, ask yourself what you would hope your best friend does to feel better, and do that for you
Look in the mirror every day and really look at yourself – and tell yourself that you are beautiful
Do something for yourself every single day – Listen to your favourite song, eat chocolate, journal – do whatever you enjoy just for you
Practice gratitude – lie in bed in the morning before you browse your phone and say aloud the things you are grateful for
Write down your goals, big or small – and how you plan to achieve them, then set little goals to get to each step no matter how long it takes
Let this be the mantra you walk away with today and let this serve as a reminder – this is YOUR life and YOUR happiness matters first.
Thirty is not the new twenty 