Being good at reading and understanding people, one thing that is hard for me is that I see a lot of emotions–many emotions on people’s faces each and every day. These emotions tug at my sleeve endlessly.  And the one emotion I see truly see the least is happiness.

Does that surprise you?

It’s actually quite rare to find a person who is completely fulfilled and content with just being who they are. Most people are not happy with their daily lives, schedules and life’s choices. They feel stuck in so many ways.  Some people are in bad relationships, have bad jobs, or difficult family lives.  And they wear it on their faces.

Open up conversations with strangers and it doesn’t take long for people to let out why they are unhappy. We all seem to know what makes us unhappy.

It’s shocking for me how many times I have asked people who aren’t happy the most important question: What would make you happy?  And they don’t have an answer. They seem better versed with “unhappiness” instead of happiness.

Isn’t that interesting?

I can’t tell you how many times I have rambled off to people these questions and got no answers of any substance back:  What is your ultimate dream in life? Where would you be if you could be anywhere right now? What would you be doing?  What is your dream job?  What is your favorite hobby? What do you love to do and excel at?  Where do you want to be in 5 years or 10 years?  Few people have answers.

I scratch my head at that point and reflect back to them, “How can you find happiness if you don’t even know what will make you happy?”

At that point, I get the standard responses, if I could live on a beach or an island for the rest of my life, or win the lottery, I would be content. But they really wouldn’t be and can’t see it.  Any good thing in excess becomes boring, but few people realize this.

Finding and obtaining true happiness takes lots of thought and deep questioning within your soul.  You first have to get to know yourself. That’s number one.  Then you have to identify what you love, excel at, gain momentum from doing, and do it.  Essentially, you have to cultivate your passion until it fills your sails and gives you purpose! Wanting to wake up and do something every day brings incredible joy, fulfillment and contentment.

It takes considerable effort, time, and learning to accomplish, too.

Finding happiness is not an easy process, or one that happens in days, weeks or even months. It can take years. Sure, you’ll have happy moments in between, but they are more fleeting. When you find true, deep happiness, it comes from within and is more powerful and soul-quenchingly satisfying. The feeling comes around much, much more often as no emotion is constant.

You just have to be committed to get to know yourself, learn what ultimately makes you happy, and do what makes you happy as much as you possible can!  This often leads to mastery and a fulfiling sense of accomplishment.

You can have true happiness. The only one stopping you from it is YOU, yourself.  So look within, not out, for the true key to unlock your happiness, and feel “bliss” frequently. It’s the pot of gold to life.

Here is a great article:  The Hat Trick of Happiness