A new study published recently examines how happiness is affected by our genetic makeup and certain environmental conditions. The results point to some key areas you can focus on to increase your happiness—both kinds of happiness.
This study concentrates on the premise that happiness can mean many things and tries to provide answers that respond to this diversity. To do this, they form the argument that there are two kinds of happiness, immoderate and excessive.
We can also call immoderate happiness daily happiness: Research defines the philosophical foundations of this happiness as a concept related to, what is good for a person and pain-pleasure balance. On the other hand, symphonic happiness is based on the idea that benevolence centers are shaped around virtuous behavior, defined as the completion of knowledge and human capacities. We can also call this a greater sense or a search for meaning.
According to the findings of the study, these two types of happiness are deeply connected and are affected by satiety in the same living spaces. Whether your pursuit is about feeling good daily or for a greater purpose, satisfaction is up to you, and the results of this work point to some critical areas for you to focus your energy on – and also some points that you shouldn’t worry about.
1- Excitement
Although it lasts longer than joy, this feeling is still a bit fleeting – it dissipates fairly quickly and can turn into ennui. However, it can be a motivating factor. For example, excitement about a new job can motivate you to work harder, and excitement about a new relationship can motivate you to make more of an effort to work hard.
Excitement can also help you skip the tremors. If you tell yourself that you’re too excited to be anxious or nervous, research suggests, you can channel potentially disturbing energy into a more constructive activity.
2- Don’t feel obliged to work in a job that makes you unhappy
Whichever job you have, whether it is completely financially and strategically career-oriented, or related to the relationships you establish at the job, your work adds some value to your life.
Job satisfaction is the highest type of satisfaction, associated with both hedonistic and symphonic happiness. Where you work and what kind of work you do have a really strong relationship with your everyday feelings and the feelings of meaning that encompass your life. So if you are not happy at work and cannot take the necessary step, look for ways to make your work more meaningful to you.
3- Gratitude
If you don’t focus actively, gratitude may disappear, but this is also an important form of happiness. According to research, those who are grateful regularly tend to be happier and healthier than those who are less prone to these emotions.
Moreover, cultivating gratitude is very simple. You can use a gratitude journal, loving-kindness meditation, or even tell people in your life that you appreciate them, and you can often. Developing these feelings of gratitude has been shown to inhibit feelings of depression, among other things. It may be less obvious, but happiness can be brought to mind repeatedly.
4- Give time to your family and friends
Faced with career needs and everyday life tasks that you can’t put off – grocery shopping, laundry, taking your child to school – it’s easy to overlook the weakening of friendship and even family ties. But this study reminds us that we have to make time for the people we love. Satisfaction in family and friend relationships is the highest type of satisfaction associated with both kinds of happiness, after job satisfaction.
5- Satisfaction
Satisfaction means being happy with what you have. Those with contentment are less disappointed by life’s drawbacks and feel lucky to have what’s going on in their lives.
People strive to feel this happiness, and it can come with a focus of gratitude for what you have and that you have climbed high and deserve to enjoy the rewards that come with effort. Bringing out your achievements and everything you have with satisfaction can add satisfaction, so focusing on what you have is a great way to stay content.
6- Take care of your body
According to the study, which emphasizes the necessity of keeping our body strong by exercising, eating healthy, and sleeping enough, general health satisfaction is also highly associated with happiness, as is job and family/friend satisfaction. Trying to stay healthy and maintain our social life with a busy pace of work can be tiresome. A friend told me yesterday that she had to choose between exercising and meeting with her friends on her holiday because every time was not enough to do both.
Conclusion
One solution may be to combine two activities: do healthy activities like running with a family member or friend or cook healthy meals. Then you will notice that your happiness level increases.