Happiness is a state of mind.
You can be happier now, if you agree to control the content of your mind.
Happiness is a state of mind based upon directing your mental focus towards one of three things:
- Your goals for the future.
- An optimistic vision of the future, as being better than the past.
- What is happening in your present environment, right now.
On the other hand, unhappiness is the opposite state of mind, which is the product of focusing your mind onto a different list of three things:
- How the past has been bad.
- How the future is likely to be bad.
- How the past was better than the present: how life was better "in the good old days".
People who are NOT happy, are unhappy, because they continually fill their mind with unhappy thoughts: thoughts about the bad past, the bad future, or how the past good times are gone forever.
People who ARE happy, are happy, because they continually fill their mind with optimistic thoughts: thoughts about how the future can be made to be better, goals for the future, or what they can do right now, in the present moment, that will improve upon the current situation.
You are the sovereign of your soul, the master of your mind, the director of your thoughts, and as such, you have the unalienable right to choose the content of your mind.
If you want to be happy, then check the content of your habitual thoughts and check the content of your habitual conversations. Notice whether the thoughts and conversations you have are on the happy or the unhappy side of this diagram:
If you discover that you are spending too much time on the wrong kind of thinking, then it is up to you to make some conscious decisions about how you are going to invest your mental energy.
You can invest your energy into the happy side, to any degree you wish, from 0% up to 100% happy.
Remember, "It isn't what you have, or who you are, or where you are, or what you are doing, that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it." Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People
happiness mindset
In personal development coaching, a happiness mindset is a mindset that keeps thoughts on clear goals, spots good things now, trusts the future will improve and refuses to dwell on sad memories or fears. Lose any one of these four habits and the mindset is no longer happy.
CG4D Definition
Context: Personal development coaching
Genus: Mindset
- Directs daily thought toward specific goals
- Frames present moments in a positive way
- Holds a steady belief that the future can improve
- Avoids dwelling on negative past events or worries
Article Summary
Happiness is not a gift from outside; it rises from the pictures you play in your head. Focus on clear goals, the good you see now and a bright future, and your mood climbs. Dwell on past hurts or fear the future, and it drops. Each day you pick the channel. Train your mind toward hope, and you build lasting, self-made happiness.