7 Simple Steps to Happiness: Begin Living for Yourself

We can assume that happiness is a state of mind, but it’s actually not. Happiness is not permanent; it’s transient. It comes and goes like waves in the sea; sometimes you’re up, and sometimes you’re down. So we assume that happiness depends on something external, such as material wealth or a special person or a luxurious place to live in.

Many people find happiness in materialism; even though they don’t have all their wishes fulfilled, they would think they’re happy because their life seems to be not so bad. Every time they look at what they have, they feel good and satisfied with themselves. 

But deep inside, they are actually discontented with their lives, and no matter what anyone says, they will never be happy because they will always want more.

In this article, I am going to share 7 simple steps to happiness. Let’s dive in. 

1. Avoid Comparison with Others 

Are you comparing yourself with others, in your class, at the workplace, or in your neighbourhood? Why do some people seem to always be happy while others are always sad?

Just like everyone else, we come across people who appear to be exceptionally happy, while others can never get out of the habit of complaining. Look at the way they talk, dress, and live; there is a stark difference between these two groups of people.

The comparison trap is so easy to fall into, but it can lead to unhappiness and feelings of being inadequate in your own life. I’ve been there, I used to compare myself with others all the time, but these days I’m trying to be as genuine as possible and not compare my life with others.

The comparison is a trap that can lead to pretty negative results in your life, and it’s something that I don’t want in my life any longer. I’d instead focus on the positive things in my life than on the things I have less of than others.

Browsing Instagram can be one thing that fuels this type of behavior, because you’re usually only seeing the highlights of a person’s life – their best moments, their most glamorous photos, their vacation photos where they are always at an exotic location. 

I’ll admit that I’ve fallen down the Instagram rabbit hole of comparing myself to others many times.

2. Be Courageous to Seek Absolute Happiness 

Be courageous to seek absolute happiness, try it for yourself, and you will find yourself happier than ever. Leap into the unknown. Be comfortable in life. Be courageous to pursue happiness because it’s a worthwhile goal. Life is too short and precious to live without feeling happy, fulfilled, and satisfied every day.

You don’t have to wait for something special to happen. You don’t have to wait for something that money can buy. You just have to strive for happiness every day in all that you do. 

You have to make happiness your top priority and decide that you will be happy no matter what happens in your life.

This philosophy is not simply about being happy all the time. It’s really about learning to balance your happiness with reality. It’s about finding the right amount of joy that fits your life, in all its imperfections. It means emphasizing living your life in a way that makes you happy now and into the future.

3. Live in the Moment

If you ask the average person if they are happy with their life, I would guess that many would say no. But, when you look closer into their lives, you will find so much to be grateful for. 

The problem is that we have a warped perception of what happiness is. We have been raised to believe that happiness is a constant state of bliss. We build our lives around working hard to achieve the things that make us happy. 

If we can just get that new job, or if we can just get that promotion, or if we can just reach the next rung up the ladder, we will be happy again.

If we could only lose those 10 pounds and get in shape, our lives would be better, right? If only I could go back to college and earn my degree, my life would finally be the way I want it to be.

4. Gratitude

Gratitude is a state of appreciation and thankfulness. It is experiencing what you have, not just the things you want. Gratitude helps you discover little things that make you happy, like a flower in the garden, a child’s smile, or the first sip of your morning coffee.

While there are many factors that influence our happiness, one of the largest lies in how we interact with the world and the people in it, studies have shown that practising gratitude quickly reduces stress and makes us happier.

It contributes to mental and physical well-being, improves your mood, and even contributes to the health of your relationships. Practice it, and you’ll be better at it.

5. Love Yourself

Do you often put yourself down with negative thoughts that you don’t think you deserve to be loved? Do you keep comparing yourself to others without knowing that living, by comparison, is the most significant waste of time?

Not many people know the importance of loving ourselves until we experience what it feels like when we don’t love ourselves.

You finally see the consequences of not loving yourself when you feel like giving up on life or being suicidal.

Love is a conscious decision. Loving yourself does not mean that you are satisfied with your current situation or that everything in your life is excellent. 

Loving yourself means that you’re outstanding with everything that’s not exactly how you want it to be, but you’ve decided to be grateful for what you have and to work towards getting what you want.

It takes time to love yourself, but once you do, you won’t regret it because loving yourself can make all the difference in your life.

6. Generosity

Generosity can come in many guises – donating time, money or goods. Helping strangers with kind words or actions. Giving to charity. We should all embrace it in our lives, not just during the holidays.

Being generous fills you with a lot of joy, and self-sustaining happiness and gives you a tremendous feeling of satisfaction. While we’re on the topic of how to be happier, why not also share some tips on how to be more generous generosity makes you more comfortable.

The idea is that when you get something for yourself, you can be instantly happy. On the other hand, if you get something for someone else, sometimes it takes a while to feel happy. 

That’s why when you do something nice for someone, you sometimes need to remind yourself that you’ll eventually be happy. Or even better, this idea can be used to make other people happy.

7. Take Charge of Your Life

Taking charge of your life to be happy is one of the most common yet powerful actions taken by many people. The sheer thought of taking control of your life can undoubtedly be daunting and may appear futile to some. 

However, if you follow these steps, you will be well on your way to being happy in life:

• Begin living for yourself and no one else.
• Discover your passion and pursue it relentlessly.
• Find valuable people and invest in them personally.
• Explore your hidden talents and abilities that you didn’t know you had.
• Doing that will help to find the one thing you are passionate about doing.
• Once you discover what you are passionate about doing, then focus on it.
• Do that thing with passion, energy and persistence, and then succeed!
• The joy of success will fill up your life with happiness, meaning and purpose.
• You will live the rest of your life happily ever after.

It may take some time, but once you take charge of your life to be happy, you will realize that you are the sole determinant in creating a better tomorrow for yourself. I hope you’ve found these simple steps to helpful happiness.