Everyone wants to be happy. We often see people who seem to have everything in the world and think, “They must be so happy because they have all this stuff.” But research actually shows that only 10% of anyone’s happiness comes from anything circumstantial. Only 10%.
You want to be married and you’re not married, you want to be unmarried when you are married; if only you could change these situations, then you’d be happy. If you only had that new vehicle or that great house your friend has, then you’d be happy. If only! But these circumstances only give you a 10% bump in your happiness. So where’s the other 90%?
Research shows that it’s actually a set of practices, behaviours, and attitudes that happy people do and possess that unhappy people do not.
Happy people are:
1) Givers – They give more than they take. They give their resources. They give their time. They pick up the check at meals, they send handwritten notes in the mail, and they give encouragement to their friends and family.
2) Grateful – They say thank-you! Even the smallest things they are given, they say thank-you. They are not entitled; they don’t expect to be given things. They express gratitude every day. Because they are so thankful they are a people magnet and people want to be around them.
3) Forgiving – Happy people keep a short record of wrongs. They don’t have a mental scroll of all the wrongdoings people have done to them 10 years ago. They deal with it, they forgive, and they forget. Why would you want to carry around extra emotional baggage every single day of your life?
4) Goal-oriented – Happy people get stuff done! They are busy and they are generally super-efficient in time management. They often say “No” to opportunites because if it’s not a “Heck yes!” it’s a no. They are so goal-oriented that they can’t do every opportunity that comes their way because they are so focused on their goals. Goals can include anything from educational goals, career goals, fitness goals, learning new skills. The list is endless. The main point being happy people don’t drift through life. They are climbing north, learning and growing.
5) Connected – Happy people don’t live on an island. While they may require alone time to recharge they are dialed in with community and with relationships. They often float around with different associations (Community special interest groups, sports teams, co-workers, friends, family etc. etc.). Happy people know the importance of relationships and investing in the lives of other people.
D Moerman Blog 