International Day of Happiness: Smile and create happier moments

What is happiness? In psychology, it is a state of emotional well-being that a person experiences, when good things happen in a specific moment, or a positive evaluation of one’s life and accomplishments overall.

Another definition given by ancient philosopher Aristotle: “Happiness is the one human desire, and all other human desires exist as a way to obtain happiness.” He believed that there were four levels of happiness: happiness from immediate gratification, from comparison and achievement, from making positive contributions, and from achieving fulfilment. Therefore, happiness can be defined as an emotional state of joy, satisfaction and fulfilment.

According to a study, experiencing happiness is important for our emotional and physical health. A stronger sense of happiness and well-being has been shown to lead to better relationships, increase social connection and contribution to the lives of others. Thus, to honour such a crucial human emotion, we celebrate 20 March as “International Day of Happiness.”

So, here are some ways in which we can celebrate this prestigious day:

1) Reflect on your happiness

You are often able to quickly identify who or what makes us happy. This helps in reminding yourself that you should be incorporating these people, places and things into your life on a daily basis as these are your sources of happiness. It’s imperative to make your happiness a priority.

2) Count on your blessings

God has blessed you with so many things, so stop comparing and make a list of things you have. For once, just close your eyes and imagine how your life will look without all these things. Miserable, right? So express gratitude for all you have.

3) Gratitude

Gratitude is the feeling of being grateful or thankful to someone. You must express gratitude towards God, your parents, teachers, relatives and even friends.

3) Be kind to others

Make people smile. Be the reason someone smiled today. Even your smallest step can make a difference. Surprise your loved ones with an unexpected visit or a phone call. Express your empathy or even compliment a stranger. Be positive and spread positivity.

4) Spend time in nature

Nature helps in reducing anxiety, relieving stress, decreasing fatigue, and boosting creativity. So, make sure that you spend some time in nature’s lap and have a great ‘Me Time’.

At the end, I would like to conclude a very beautiful quote by Mahatma Gandhi, “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”

Thus, make this International Day of Happiness the most memorable day of your life!