20 Nov Your happiness depends on which way you think about “how far?”
There are many factors that contribute to happiness.
Happiness can come from setting and working towards meaningful goals, it’s connected to your physical health and wellbeing, and happiness is most definitely associated with hope and optimism and gratitude, as well as positive relationships and, well, so much more.
But if we look, just for today, at the first factor I mentioned … accomplishment and achievement, your happiness can depend on how you think about it.
For some, happiness comes from striving towards something bigger and better, something they want to achieve in the future. Which is great, until it isn’t!
Because this type of happiness is one at which you never really arrive. There will always be more to achieve and further to go and so the risk here is that you’re never satisfied and always frustrated.
An alternative is, instead, to reflect on how far you’ve come. This is more concrete, and can be a tangible measure of progress, even if not perfection. Looking at how far you’ve come is a way of looking at success. Looking at how far you have to go can seem daunting and overwhelming.
Ultimately, there are pros and cons to both and so ultimately, it’s important to be mindful of how you’re thinking and of whether it’s serving you well at this point in time. But whichever way you choose, always make sure you recognise how far you’ve come, because the happiness that comes from realistically acknowledging the gains you’ve made from the hard work you’ve put in is invaluable and unshakable and something upon which you can build a solid foundation of positive emotion and positive living.