What is happiness?

The truth is that the concept of happiness has long since become more subjective. This is because this definition speaks much more about who is in power of opinion than about common sense, that is, the majority.

For example: for many, happiness is all about money, status, power or ostentation. For others, it is a state of mind, something profound that connects mainly to the simplicity of life, since the simplest things are the ones that can provide this aspect.

Regardless of how you see this precept, keep reading this article, as we're going to bring together many factors for you to reflect further on happiness!

Meaning of happiness

When we are learning what each thing in the world we live in is, we always seek the meaning of everything. Whether it is our intuitions or the materialities present in this life. This is what ceases our doubts or takes us to other levels of reasoning.

Therefore, we can look for this meaning in different places that will have different views on the same perspective. We should also think about how intense the definition of happiness is, whether internal or external. If you want to know more about these meanings, skip to the next part!

According to the dictionary

According to the dictionary, the word happiness comes from the Latin word "felicitas". It is a feminine noun that has by meaning:

Actual feeling of full satisfaction; state of contentment, of satisfaction. Condition of a person who is happy, satisfied, joyful, contented. State of one who has good luck: 'for your happiness, the boss hasn't arrived yet'. Circumstance or situation in which there is success: happiness in the realization of the project.

We can also remember that "happiness" is an abstract noun, because it is not something tangible, but a feeling, a sensation that goes beyond what we can materialize.

Internal happiness

When we talk about happiness, people smiling, jumping, hugging or even running come to mind. This is because our brain internalizes meanings that are not always true to reality. Happy people will not always show it on their faces, because it is not a rule that a happy person smiles every 5 minutes and makes jokes.

When we reflect on this, we can understand that this stereotype, just like all the others, gets in the way, and a lot, when we try to coincide it with the reality lived. Happy people can feel this inside, without precisely smiling. Even because they say that happiness is part of peace, calmness and not so much of euphoria.

External happiness

The stereotype created for the definition of happiness is taken as real when we see someone euphoric, smiling and telling jokes. This is completely subjective, because there are people who feel happy and are quiet, and others who can expose this feeling through these same attitudes: external happiness.

It can be very overwhelming, but we cannot ignore the fact that many people who show happiness through these attitudes are actually people who are experiencing depression or very deep sadness. Therefore, external happiness needs to be analyzed carefully in order to understand the reason for it.

The pursuit of happiness

There are many people who spend their lives looking for happiness and in the end, they can't really tell if they have achieved it or not. This is because this concept is subjective and depends solely on what you are really looking for - stability, building a family, properties, companies, status, etc.

So, it is certain that many people spend their lives without achieving it, because they have not really learned to define, within their reality, what happiness is. They may think that happiness is to live calmly and without the remnants of any problem that may arise and, because they do not reach this goal, they spend their lives frustrated without finding what they want.

Secrets of happiness according to science

According to Enrique Tamés (professor at the University of North Carolina), the human being is essentially negative and pessimistic, which means that achieving happiness and fulfillment is one of the most difficult challenges of the modern era.

This one goes even further and states that there is a need for the human being to always be worried about something. Because of this, the experts state that we should work daily so that we can drive away this sad tendency that belongs to humans. Check out these and more facts about happiness according to science in the topics below!

The important thing is to take risks

It is completely wrong to believe that happiness is tied to tranquility, because no one is ever completely quiet, without having a concern or fear in place. So learning that we can take risks is one of the keys to letting go of the pressure and understanding that this is part of life and will never stop doing so.

Therefore, life is a constant risk. We can go through any situation, from the simplest to the most extraordinary, and all of them can entail risks in our life. This does not imply that we are not happy, but that we are living and that this is simply part of our living.

Details make all the difference

It is important to emphasize that some details are very crucial when it comes to highlighting our happiness. These details, as simple as they may be, are effective in making any human being, no matter how cold they may be, feel happy, even if only for a few minutes.

Thus, the contact with nature is a constant present in happiness. This is because this connection leads us to a tranquility and simplicity in living, calming us down and highlighting a part of the human being that just wants it: a few minutes of peace.

Not only that, but the details of getting something we love, a care from someone dear to us, or even a smile from a child cause this feeling. These details, however small, fill our minds and take us away from what we are programmed to do: work and deal with problems.

"I root for you"

Happiness often depends on a few reasons that encourage and give prestige. For many, simple words and attitudes can differentiate the day to day, giving the necessary to smile and rejoice.

In general, human beings love to receive compliments or positive words about themselves, and because of this, there are people who feel completely satisfied when they receive positive phrases such as "I support you" or others. Such words increase our self-esteem and encourage us to continue our efforts in what we have been praised for.

Negative feelings on display

It is remarkable that people, in most cases, do not take pleasure in hearing or speaking negative or pessimistic words. This transfers negative and sad feelings, which directly affect our mental health and, consequently, our sense of pleasure and happiness.

So, to achieve this level of tranquility and happiness, we should expose only positive words and feelings, even if discouraged and hopeless. The feeling of sadness is plausible and acceptable, but persistence in these feelings can lead to depression or other problems. Therefore, always choose positive words and feelings to compose your days.

Cutting the make-out short

An obvious situation that we should avoid, but that appears a lot, is the non-acceptance of people to make out, or the extreme feeling of always wanting to work and never rest. This thought causes many embarrassments and problems of physical and psychological health.

So, it is important that, to be happy, people have in mind that resting and enjoying with family or friends is extremely necessary. Because of this, do not deprive yourself, rest and have fun whenever the opportunity arises.

Happiness according to philosophy

Analyzing happiness based on philosophy can help us understand more and more what is expected of us about it, since we can see that it is something very subjective, without recipes or step by step.

Some philosophers, such as Lao Tzu, Confucius, Socrates, Plato, Seneca, among others, reflect a lot on this term and can give a guide on how to achieve happiness. Because of this, if you want to know more about how happiness is analyzed based on philosophy, keep reading the next section!

Lao Tzu

Lao Tzu, for those who don't know him, is an ancient Chinese philosopher who founded Taoism. He synthesizes the pursuit of happiness into eight crucial steps that can generate much result, since, for him, a person would never learn to stop their struggles if they don't appreciate happiness.

Thus, the ancient philosopher says that one should listen to one's own heart, so that one can face all the challenges that lie ahead. He also teaches that we should appreciate the path, that is, not focus on where we want to get to, but on what is happening now.

In addition to these teachings, Lao Tzu emphasizes that we should follow life with simplicity, guarding our tongues, never expecting anything in return for the good we do, and possessing a joyful and intense soul.

Gautama Buddha

Gautama Buddha was a prince who reached the peak of unhappiness, deciding to run away in search of understanding more about life. For Buddha, happiness is laid out in some basic teachings, such as:

- Right view: not always the realization of our desires will bring us happiness;

- Right Thinking: it is important not to allow anger or sadness to last more than a moment;

- Correct speech: only say what will attract positivity and joy.

- Right action: do not act on impulse, always think if your actions will generate good things;

- Right livelihood: not trying to get a leg up on anyone, living quietly;

- Right effort: leave behind all that is harmful;

- Right Attention: pay attention to what makes you feel good while ignoring everything else;

- Correct concentration: pay attention to what you are feeling.

Confucius

According to Confucius, happiness depends solely on persistence in making others happy. This seems impossible if we stop to analyze how selfish and stingy the world is. On the other hand, we should have happiness as a form of self-control in which one must learn to control and tame oneself.

Thus, if we analyze the phrases that the thinker wrote, we can understand that he really corroborated with the thought that happiness is, many of the times, present in small attitudes, such as:

Simple meals, water to drink, elbow bent as a pillow; therein lies happiness. Riches and position without integrity are like the clouds that float away.

Socrates

For Socrates, happiness was present in self-knowledge, that is, in the gift or virtue of the human being in knowing himself and understanding how to lead his own life. He affirmed that the main cause of unhappiness was ignorance of the facts.

Thus, the secret of happiness so sought by so many, for Socrates, was in the simple detail of possessing this art of looking inside yourself and understanding your emotions, reasons, virtues. With this, it would be possible to understand the meaning and how to lead your life in the best possible way.

Plato

Plato had an abstract idea of the concept of happiness. For him, it consisted in desiring and idealizing the beautiful, the beautiful, without harming others. That is, to be happy was to possess the science of good and evil, avoiding unjust things, but always seeking the fullness of justice.

After defining what you want, you should go after it, but with a pure soul, that is, without remorse, sadness or evil, because this would define happiness in your life as a friend and loyal to your attitudes.

Seneca

The philosopher Seneca believed that happiness was hidden exactly in the fact of desiring nothing and therefore fearing nothing. It is essential to note that the philosopher agreed that nature also goes hand in hand with happiness, that is, the man who desires nothing, but has love for it, guarantees happiness.

For him, the greatest mistake of the human being is to expect happiness from money and wealth. Thus, we must conclude that it is hidden along with the simple but right things at the time of providing this virtue.

Bertrand Russell

The famous philosopher Bertrand Russel was a mathematician and writer. He had a very particular view on happiness, in which he stated that what causes boredom and sadness is in closing oneself to the world. Thus, Bertrand assumed that looking inside causes many complexities and that we should focus on the outside world, simplifying the steps.

Moreover, he preached that happiness is a conquest and must be earned through effort and resignation. One must cultivate it and seek it every day to find its ultimate fruit.

John Stuart Mill

The philosopher John Stuart Mill opined about happiness with what dexterity and objectivity. For him, happiness cannot be attained directly, but in order to come close to it, we must value and cultivate the happiness of others, who are around us.

The more we focus on producing happiness for others, the more we find it. We should focus on the progress of humanity and the development of the arts, generating an inner happiness that will consequently make everything that is planted for the sake of others worthwhile.

Soren Kierkegaard

For the Danish philosopher and critic Soren Kierkegaard, happiness only appears if glimpsed externally. In other words, when we open the door to happiness, we find it externally. Whoever, for some reason, tries to find it in the opposite direction gets even more frustrated, noticing that he cannot reach the goal.

In other words, the philosopher recommends that we see happiness in the natural things in life, without forcing it to happen and letting it occur quietly. Therefore, do not force this encounter, because it will only occur when you stop persisting.

Henry D. Thoreau

Henry D. Thoreau is an American author and philosopher very popular for his phrases, which are still famous today. His vision about happiness has a direction of thought that agrees that happiness is not something to be sought, but found suddenly.

The more you desire and want it, the more you get lost and frustrated, obtaining the opposite result and finding more sadness. However, it is not something to worry about, because, according to the philosopher, as soon as you are distracted, you will feel it resting on you, without you noticing it.

Tips to have more happiness

The conquest for happiness is much sought after, but little found, exactly because there is no bulla or a perfect recipe for it. You can follow some valuable tips to get close to the feeling and pleasure of happiness, but it is more likely that it will only happen when you discover your path.

Thus, you can start to have more positive attitudes and courage to face your fears, or avoid procrastination, having therapy as your main ally. It is important that you focus on these tips to ensure a tranquility that will generate happiness. To learn more about, continue reading the next section!

Positive attitudes

Attitudes such as positive thinking can be essential to the secret of happiness. All this for the simple reason that what we think and plant comes back to us as the law of planting. This means that if you prioritize good attitudes, as well as thoughts in the same format, your life will attract to you exactly those virtues, offering happiness.

So, it is important that you are not a person who bends easily in front of the problems. It is necessary that you face them, always keeping the plenitude and the security that they will be overcome with persistence, just waiting for the action of time.

Facing Fears

What gives us the greatest feeling of sadness and detachment from happiness, without a doubt, is the inability to face our fears and let them override our life. Living scared or coerced by our fears does not make us better, on the contrary, it oppresses us making us feel as if we have no control over ourselves.

It is ideal that you get strength and reasons to face your fears, facing them with security so that they can diminish in your presence. This will bring a sense of overcoming and will make you have great joy and enthusiasm for diminishing what has long troubled you.

Share emotions

One of the self-sabotages we do is to try to suppress ourselves, keeping to ourselves what is bothering or hurting us and giving vent to a lot of sadness and bitterness. It's okay to expose and share emotions with someone you trust, because showing up weak and vulnerable is not always a bad sign, but it can mean a lot of humanity.

So, it is important to understand that we are people, human beings, and not robots programmed to endure and not feel what hurts and destroys. So, don't feel the need to hide and share your emotions with people who you know will not judge you, but support you.

Wake up for the new

Many times, we are stagnated in some situation in life that does not allow us to grow or become more flexible, causing a lot of uncertainty, doubts and even sadness that prevent us from reaching the fullness of happiness. If necessary, wake up for the new and give new meaning to some important decisions in your life.

Take advantage and face your fears, innovating and accomplishing what you have wanted for a long time but haven't had the courage for. This gives you a new meaning and establishes reasons to keep fighting and battling.

Avoid procrastination

Procrastination is a very recurring act of self-sabotage, because it gives you a false sense that you are putting off something not required at that moment, whether it's due to laziness or another reason. But this only accumulates obligations, causing stress and agitation, which can generate a lot of anxiety and unhappiness.

Therefore, it is important that you avoid procrastination, not allowing anything to accumulate and doing everything at the time when it is necessary. This may seem tiring, however it will cherish your mental health, offering more tranquility to make such conditions.

Take care of yourself

The habit of caring is inherent to the human being, but we don't always manage to take care of ourselves and only focus on taking care of others. This, unfortunately, is a bad habit, which leads to many problems that will lead to unhappiness.

Therefore, you should prioritize yourself, because this is not a sign of selfishness, but of mental health. It is necessary to be well in order to take care of others. It is completely impossible for someone who is not well to take care of others. Therefore, prioritize yourself and take care of yourself.

Environments that do you good

Sometimes we feel that there are places that do not match our way of being, and because of this, it causes us to feel bad, making us feel like leaving and not staying in an environment where the energies do not converse with what is inside us. But instead of following our intuition, we stay in the place.

This causes us a lot of sadness and discomfort, preventing our happiness and harmony with life. So, for this to cease and you can get closer to joy, avoid these companies and environments that do not do you good.

Have gratitude

The practice of giving thanks and being grateful for everything we have, without a doubt, changes the meaning of our existence and provides us with moments of reflection about how much we have reasons to be happy, completely ignoring the problems of life that want to demotivate us.

Therefore, start reflecting on everything you receive or have received during your life and focus your energies on them. Make room for the fullness of valuing everything you have.

Moments of happiness

It is good to reflect on what you consider as happiness. It is also necessary that you reconsider the small moments of happiness that arise throughout the day and existence, like the smile of a child, the joy of your dog when it sees you arrive or a hug with longing from someone you love.

All these moments intensify the joy of living, but sometimes they are not valued, causing frustration and sadness. Thus, we must learn to glimpse what we have and punctuate all these moments as being crucial to our happiness.

Therapy as an ally

One of the secrets of happiness is to recognize our vulnerability as human beings, opening our minds to understand that, many times, we need help, and this does not become shameful for anyone. Because of this, doing a therapy with a professional in the area is strictly necessary to help find happiness.

The psychologist will help you to align some points or traumas generated in childhood or during your life. Thus, it can help you to mature the information in healthy ways, guiding the best way to face the problems and teaching how to face them in the best possible way.

Does happiness really matter?

Based on the information prescribed in this article, we can say that happiness is what gives meaning to our existence, because without it, it is very difficult to live in a light and balanced way. We must also be careful, because the excessive search for it can generate many frustrations, increasing unhappiness.

So think of happiness as a beautiful butterfly that flies. The more you run after it, the more it will get away from you. The secret is to wait patiently and very cautiously and attentively for it to suddenly land on your shoulder through the small moments it appears!