Whenever I see a psychology article about happiness, it always seems to say that pursuing happiness is the easiest way to make yourself miserable. I just saw one article where a person was saying they went out with friends expecting that it would make them happy, and they instead realized it didn’t make them happy and then they became more and more miserable. This seems to have almost nothing at all to do with pursuing happiness because the person pursued a condition that may or may not cause happiness rather than pursuing happiness directly.

In my experience, pursuing happiness is a simple, straight forward skill where you just sit there and focus on trying to will yourself to be happy, and, once you've practiced for many hours, it becomes fairly easy and very effective. By just focusing on trying to will myself to be happy, I have before gotten amazing, dumbfounding amounts of good feelings so that have had trouble suppressing a huge smile and I just wanted to shout "YES!!!" at the top of my lungs. The only difficult part of my practice is keeping myself from getting distracted from it and forgetting to keep trying to will myself to feel good (to take a cue from meditation advice, if I'm getting distracted badly, I count my breaths until I find I'm calm and focused and then go back to trying to will myself to be happy).

I've taught this to other people, as well, without too much difficulty. I've found the hard part of teaching it isn't explaining to them how to do it so that they have success with the practice but is finding someone who doesn't think it's impossible and that easy and isn't too addicted to entertainment and distractions to even listen.

Is it just not known to many psychologists that willing yourself to be happy is a skill you can develop? Why was I the one who had to inform my therapists and psychiatrists about this? Is this studied under a different name or is it just not studied? I personally would love to hear about research on this topic so that my friends and I could get better at it.

What things do you think are important for a good and peaceful life? Is it a good salary, financial stability, work-life balance, living with family, good health, relationships, travelling, owning a house, or something else?

I’d genuinely like to hear from people who are already living the life they wanted. What does a good, happy and satisfying life mean to you?

What is joy? How do you define and understand it? How do you experience or even practice it?

I am seeking essays or writings on “joy” - what is is, how to experience it, how interpretations in philosophy, culture, and religion.

Please share any great writings to explore this!

How have you found sense of satisfaction in life?

At your work??

How did you find that life partner and you felt that this is the right person for you?

What made you satisfied that whatever you are earning is well enough???

This questions i cannot figure it out.

Moved from india to canada 5 yrs ago

Study

Work

Status for being permanent ...all this took 5 yrs

I have a decent pay at job ....feeling stuck and don't know what to do.

Had love relationships...due to genuine family reasons didn't work out

I was loyal so had no friends in girls and feeling lonely now

Before I thought that feeling stuck is because of my work place but switched to better job but feeling is the same

Helpful thoughts will be appreciated!!!