5 spicy ingredients of happiness

What is happiness? How can will truly justify that we are happy? What benefit does happiness bring to our life? Is it actually worth it? These are some of the numerous questions asked about happiness that are still vaguely answered till date.

• Most people are happy but don’t know why

Ask different people what is the key to happiness in life, and be sure to get different answers. Strange? it shouldn’t be. Reasons being that most people have been happy at one point in their life or another. However, this happiness could be catalyzed by different reasons.

Hence, happiness is something that is still yet to be understood. Happiness is a state of being happy. Others define it as a state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to extreme joy.

The definition given above isn’t exactly what we are looking for. Let’s go further by defining “happy”. This is a feeling or showing pleasure or contentment.

Happiness, therefore, is a state and not a feeling neither is it a goal. This state differs for different persons. Most times it is mistaken for joy. Joy is actually a decision to be content whether things are going smoothly or not i.e. it is controlled by internal factors. Happiness, however, is a result of external factors. It does not just come on it’s one

• You don’t choose to be happy, you choose to be joyful

Extracting an important point from happiness,

• Happiness is a state, not a trait i.e. it isn’t long-lasting, permanent feature or personality trait, but a more fleeting, changeable state.

Most times happiness is interchanged with subjective wellbeing. As the name implies, your being would be analyzed and it would be decided if you’re happy or not.

5 spicy ingredients of happiness

Below are ingredients of happiness that will drive happiness into your life. A shortfall in any of these areas can cause stress, unhappiness, and a feeling of being out of control

1. Good health

Ever seen an unhealthy person who has happiness written all over his/her face? You might be tempted to say yes, but between both of us, you know that’s not true. They practically don’t go together.

Let’s say, for example, the unhealthy person is happy, what about family and friends? I doubt they will know what happiness is at that point in time. Good health is a very paramount ingredient of happiness, making it a necessity to have good health habits. With this, you will see your self happier than you already are.

2. Happy relationship

Be it a good or happy relationship, it goes a long way of instilling happiness in someone. You can’t have a happy relationship and be unhappy. As long as there are people around you that really care, you always have them in times of problems, and the outcome is a solution 95% of the time and the other 5%, they will give you a reason to allow happiness in.

Most times this happy relationship is always found in good friends, family etc. having good friends is not easy, they are some who become closer than families, others are worse than your enemies and your downfall their priority.

You need to sit and know the qualities of a good friend so as not to fall prey to bad friends. Lastly, not having a happy relationship leads to depression and should be avoided. Build a good and happy relationship today and let happiness locate you.

3. Meaningful work

Meaningful work in this sense has a lot of grey areas around it. You can’t be idle and be truly happy. Total engagement in life brings about true happiness. Doing things that keeps you active is the key, but don’t neglect the part where you have to be enjoying it.

Otherwise, it’s of little or no use. People happen to be truly happy when they feel they are making a contribution of some kind in one way or the other. That they are putting in more than they are taking out. You need to feel that what you do really makes a difference in the lives and work of other people.

In the study of employee motivation under industrial psychology, employers think that people are primarily motivated by salaries and benefits, status symbols etc. but on surveying employees, the factors that motivated them are responsibility, challenge of work, meaningful work, achievement, accomplishment, growth opportunities which according to HERZBERG TWO FACTOR THEORY are called motivators

One of the most important responsibilities to yourself is finding the right job for you or creating the right job for you. Once you do get there, throw your whole heart into it.

Though with time, for some reason you might feel that you’ve accomplished all you need to about that job, then you find a new one, otherwise, stay put and give your all. If for any reason, you do not feel like putting your whole heart into your work, it may be lacking one or more of the motivators above. That’s a sign that it’s not the right place for you.

4. Financial independence

Earlier on we found out that doing things that keep you active is the key. This is you making a living by doing what you enjoy, and for which you are well paid. Believe me, it’s either what you enjoy doing is paying you or something else is paying you else you can’t be truly happy.

In the world of today, finance is one of the most important commodities if not the most important. You need it to get things done. Can one be truly happy when he/she cannot get things done? I doubt it.

One of your chief responsibilities to yourself is to work toward financial independence and financial freedom throughout your life. One of the happiest people is those who have gotten to the point where they don’t have to worry about money. If you are not there yet, it’s a place you would love to be and it’s actually worth it.

This is not something you can leave to chance, but rather something that requires deliberate, purposeful action and tremendous self-discipline to achieve.

The feeling of a big gap between where you want to be financially and where you are at present leads to stress, unhappiness, worry etc. strive towards financial freedom and happiness will chase you down

5. Self-actualization

Comprises of self and actualization i.e. actualizing yourself. It is the feeling that you are finally becoming all you want to become. This occurs when you feel that you are realizing more and more of your true potential.

Let’s go back to employee motivation under industrial psychology. In MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS, Abraham Maslow assumed that people have both “deficiency needs” and “being needs”. Arranging them in a hierarchy, he concluded that a5-level hierarchy of needs exists universally which are physiological needs, security or safety needs, belongingness or social needs, esteem or ego needs, then self-actualization.

With the first three falling under deficiency needs, he also assumed that only unsatisfied needs motivated us, as lower-level needs are satisfied, higher-level needs become more important. Detailed information about the five needs will make us digress from the point.

The highest human need as stated by Maslow is self-actualization. He concluded that less than 2% of the population ever reaches this height. Most people remain so preoccupied with their deficiency needs and protecting or enhancing their self-esteem and their ego needs that they give little thought or effort to self-actualization. Realizing that you have tremendous potential and striving to actualize it will make you experience self-actualization and true happiness.

The happiest of all people are those who feel they are doing something worthwhile for example mountain climbers, creating work of art etc. it more like making good use of your talents. Funny enough these self-actualization needs cannot be fully satisfied reasons being that men need are insatiable. But as you continually strive towards it, you feel a rush of happiness which makes you grow from strength to strength.

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