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What makes people happy? Habits of Happy People â€" Backed By Research
Happy people vs. miserable people
Happy people engage in more happiness-boosting habits while unhappy people engage in more misery-inducing habits.
You can choose which habits to cultivate in your life. If you want to be happier, simply install more happiness-boosting habits.
That means that your happiness lies in your very own hands. You can choose which habits to cultivate in your life.
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Happy people vs. miserable people
Happy people engage in more happiness-boosting habits while unhappy people engage in more misery-inducing habits.
You can choose which habits to cultivate in your life. If you want to be happier, simply install more happiness-boosting habits.
That means that your happiness lies in your very own hands. You can choose which habits to cultivate in your life.
Happy People Experience Flow Often
It is marked by intense concentration, a sense of timelessness, and a loss of self-consciousness. It’s a deeply healing and enjoyable state and one that greatly contributes to our happiness.
Activities of happy people
- They meditate.
- They exercise regularly. “Surveys show that exercise may very well be the most effective instant happiness booster of all activities.”
- They stop and smell the roses.
- They spend time with their furry friends.
- They spend time outside.
Happy people look after their relationships
- They spend ample time with friends and family.
- They celebrate other people’s successes.
- They engage in deep conversations.
- They make the people around them happy.
Happy people are generous
- They give freely.
- They spend money on experiences.
- They spend money to benefit others.
- They forgive (themselves and others).
The conscious attitude of happy people
- They don’t compare themselves to others.
- They practice gratitude.
- They are hopeful and optimistic.
- They practice mindfulness.
- They comfort themselves in hard times.
- They don’t overthink.
- They remember the positive.
- They try to be happy.
- They act happy.
Having Things to Look Forward To
Happy people tend to live active and somewhat busy lives. They meet up with friends after work, go on a hiking trip with the family on the weekend, and play tennis every Wednesday morning with a friend.
This busy lifestyle provides an unintended but powerful source of happiness: anticipation.
Character Strengths
Each one of us has certain distinct character strengths. Some people are particularly courageous, others are very honest, empathic, loyal, intelligent, optimistic or integer.
Research has found that using our biggest strengths – what they call ‘signature strengths’ – makes us incredibly happy and fulfilled.
Happy People See Their Jobs as a Calling
A calling is to view your work with the belief that it contributes to something larger than yourself, to the greater good.
‘The Paradox of Choice’
More choices don’t equal more happiness, but less.
Research in recent years has shown over and over again that an overabundance of possibilities to choose from can have terrible effects on our well-being, especially when combined with regret, adaptation, social comparison, and concern about status.
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Happy people are well rounded people
- They savor the moment. They "stop to smell the roses".
- They're busy, but not rushed. A healthy work-life balance is key.
- They don't sweat the small stuff...
Happy people invest in their relationships
- They spend money on others. One reason is that it creates social connections.
- They celebrate other people's success through "active and constructive" responding.
- They treat everyone with respect and kindness. Kindness, like happiness, is contagious.
- They're proactive about relationships. They work on maintaining their relationships.
- They express gratitude. It improves mood and energy and decreases anxiety.
- They engage in deep, meaningful conversations.
The attitude of happy people
- They're optimistic. Bad things happen to all of us. Happy people don't complain, whine or let pessimism become a self-fulling prophecy.
- They view problems as challenges. They focus on solutions to the problem and reflect on what they're grateful for.
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The Happiness Pie Chart
The Happiness Pie Chart, first published in 2005, states that 50% of our happiness is defined by our genes, 40% by our activities and 10% by our life circumstances.
Recent studie...
Give Yourself A Happiness Boost
Ways to give yourself a happiness boost:
- Choosing activities that fit our personality and interests, feel natural, are enjoyable and aligned with our values.
- Choosing meaningful and virtuous activities, instead of just going after pleasurable ones.
- Practicing forgiveness and gratitude.
- Trying to pursue a purpose.
- Committing to new habits by making an effort.
- Adding variety and diversity to our routine.
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Concerns with positive psychology
- There are worries about its replicability and unreliable self-reports.
- Promoting material achievement as part of happiness can make well-being seem out of reach.
- Positive psych...
Reasons for popularity
There is no major conclusion in positive psychology that has not been challenged, modified or even rejected.
Yet the fact that positive psychology is becoming more popular means that it gives hope, optimism and perhaps happiness to millions of its consumers.
The beginning of positive psychology
The story of positive psychology started just 20 years ago with Martin Seligman, head of the American Psychological Association. The idea he considered was: What if every person was encouraged to nurture his or her character strengths, rather than being scolded into fixing their shortcomings?
He reorientated the entire discipline of psychology away from mostly treating mental illness and toward human flourishing, then used his authority to promote it.
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