Perception of Happiness: –

Even if generic make up plays a role in happiness – and the verdict is still out on how large that role is – there is general agreement among psychologists that no matter what level of happiness we are endowed with by nature, there are steps we can take to work with the “mind factor’ to enhance our feelings of happiness. This is because our outlook largely determines our moment-to- moment happiness. In fact whether we are feeling happy or unhappy at any given moment often has very little to do with our absolute conditions but rather it is a function of how we perceive our situation, how satisfied we are with what we have.

What shapes our perception and level of satisfaction?

Our feelings of contentment are strongly influenced by our tendency to compare. When we compare our current situation to our past and find that we are better off, we feel happy. So we see how our feelings of life satisfaction often depends upon whom we compare ourselves to. Constant comparison with those who are smarter, more beautiful or successful than us also tends to breed envy, frustration and unhappiness. But we can use this same principle in a positive way, we can increase our feeling of life satisfaction by comparing ourselves to those who are less fortunate than us and by reflecting on all the things we have.