August 5, 2014
What makes up happiness? Martin Seligman, a leading researcher studying positive psychology, and author of “Authentic Happiness,” considers happiness a combination of three things, pleasure, meaning, and engagement. I agree with that. When you experience pleasure, you experience it because you feel good about who you are and what you do. It is basically impossible to experience happiness if you don’t have that sense of pride. Similarly, when you feel that your life has meaning and you have a strong sense of purpose, it is hard not to feel unhappy. Lastly, when you feel good about life as it pertains to work, friends, family, and hobbies you are engaged and, as such, you are bound to feel happy. Thus, whenever you feel unhappy, search your heart and find which of the things that make up happiness, you might need to strengthen. By doing that you can achieve the type of sense of peace and satisfaction that everyone needs to feel happy.