Happiness Is A Choice

"Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln

If only. How many times have you used that phrase when thinking about your happiness? If only this, if only that. I'd be happier if only. If only I had a better job. If only I had more or better opportunities. If only I had a nicer car or house. On and on and on.

There's always something we're waiting for; the right relationship, the right job, the right living situation, a child, a raise, a change of season, an opportunity, the right time, the right circumstances. Whatever it is, we believe that when that specific something happens or is achieved that changes those circumstances, we'll be happy. The grass always seems to be greener on the other side.

But how often have you obtained this 'thing' you thought would bring you happiness only to find out that the feeling remained the same even though the circumstances changed. You find out that wasn't indeed the key to your happiness.

When we look around, we see plenty of happy people, even without all the things they want. They simply decide to be happy now rather than postponing their happiness for a time that may never come. The happiest people don't have everything or even the best of everything; they just choose to make the best out of everything. The happiest people don't always get what they want, but they learn to want what they get. They learn to appreciate what they have. It's a choice. It's a perspective. It's a decision. It's a commitment and a promise to themselves.

It's okay to want more. It's okay to strive to improve. It's okay to want your circumstances to be different. In fact, we need to strive for more. We need to have goals and dreams to help pull us through. But not for the sake of downgrading today.

The reason happiness often eludes us is that our brains simply aren't wired that way. We're often focused and stuck in our fears. Fears that we won't have enough. Fears that we aren't enough. Fears that we won't be able to handle the circumstances. We focus on how to survive, how to protect ourselves and keep ourselves safe. But we get stuck focusing on the negative aspects of life. Existing instead of living. If we continue to live in the state of thinking the past was better than it really was, the present worse than it really is, and in fear that the future will not really get any better, then we'll continually be in a state of unhappiness. It's time to stop this way of thinking.

Happiness in itself is a state of mind, not a set of circumstances. Tell yourself, "I can and will choose to be happy today." The happiness you feel in your life depends on the quality of your thoughts, your attitude, and being positive.

Can it really be that easy? Well, the simple answer to this is yes, it can be. But the truth is the act itself is not always that easy. It, like everything else, you need to work on it. You need to turn it into a positive habit. Consistently focusing on this will lead to a happier life.

Decide what is right for you today. Believe in yourself and that you deserve to be happy. Control what you can control. Choose your thoughts, choose your attitudes, choose your actions and choose to be happy. Happiness is a choice, not a result.

Make today great!

Curtis

"Nothing will make you happy until you choose to be happy. No person will make you happy unless you decide to be happy. Your happiness will not come to you. It can only come from you." - Ralph Marston