ORLANDO, Fla – Are you happy? Are you truly happy? And what makes people happy?
The Global Happiness report found that 71% of people say they are rather happy. But that’s down from 79% last year.
People in the Netherlands top the list when it comes to happiness, and Hungary and South Korea are at the bottom.
The United States ranks 23rd out of 140 nations. And it turns out younger people are sadder than Boomers.
But what qualifies as true happiness?
A life partner, kids, family, friends, a job, money, these are all the things that make us happy, right? But actually, the pursuit of happiness may be making us unhappy.
In fact, experts believe the never-ending pursuit of happiness is exhausting and can leave us unsatisfied, disconnected and always feeling like we are never enough.
“Happiness seems to be moving around and it’s not a constant thing, just like success isn’t always constant, failure isn’t constant,” said James West, President of the Total Life Counseling Center.
But there are traits genuinely happy people share.
First, they choose to be happy. It’s being satisfied with who you are and what you do.
Secondly, they understand that life happens. It can be painful, scary and boring. If life doesn’t go their way, they accept it and move on.
Genuinely happy people don’t focus on what other people think of them, and they are able to let go, and not control things that are uncontrollable.
“If you do your personal best and you lose, is there anything else you could have done? No. You did the best you could,” said West.
If you want to be happy, here are three things to do:
- Work to know what you value and why
- Accept that life isn’t always going to go your way
- Align your life around your values
And if you do these things, you may actually find your happiness.
A study out of the University of Michigan found that engaging in at least 150 minutes of exercise per week can significantly boost mood. Researchers from the University of Michigan discovered that the specific type of exercise was less important than the consistency and overall physical activity. Simply incorporating regular exercise into one’s routine can lead to a noticeable increase in happiness.