Ten Tips to True Happiness

What is the definitive word on Happiness? Good question. I have spent years investigating this very topic, even making it the subject of my PhD dissertation. You can explore the nature of happiness from many perspectives, whether through history, from psychology, religion, spiritual and esoteric thought, and from some strange new ideas from science.

What answer can be given to the direct question, “So what is happiness?” – without giving you 360 pages to read! If there were one single answer, it would be that about half of us are just born that way – on the “sunny side” of the road, whilst the rest of us struggle to catch up. However, sometimes things go wrong even for the best of us, and all is not lost even for the other half.  Here are my ten most prominent findings.

1. About half of us are naturally far happier 
2. The rest of us have to work at it, and most won't even begin
3. Happiness means different things to different people, and it is not one-size fits all; what makes one person happy may seriously annoy another, or may even by regarded as inappropriate in some cultures
4. The things that make a given individual happy depends on innate features of personality present even at birth
5. The nature and sustainability of individual happiness depends on your degree of emotional growth; how much of your personal “stuff” you have faced and truly let go of
6. The last few points suggest that there is a natural path to follow for each of us that would deliver more enduring happiness
7. The most effective involves being fully yourself and learning to follow your heart and intuition – wherever it leads you, event though this may have challenging consequences
8. It is worthwhile getting some guidance to avoid relying on learning everything the hard way, making elementary mistakes. But in any case, push on!
9. Happiness starts with a conscious choice to make it a guiding principle, and will involve effort and commitment
10. Nevertheless, happiness really does matter, but it is not the point of life; it does propel us loosely in the direction of growth and evolution, which is the point of life.