Happiness is a choice

I recently saw a quote that went along the lines of 'if you want to be happy, you have to be happy on purpose. When you wake up, you can't just wait to see what kind of day you'll have...you have to decide it yourself'. And that really got me thinking about how so many of us seem to think of happiness as a result of something. We see happiness as something we will achieve as an end result such as "I'll be happy once I lose 10 pounds" or "I'll be happy once I graduate this degree" and so on. But happiness never seems to arrive, right? There is always another thing and another goal to achieve before we can truly experience happiness. It always seems so close yet so far away. And we have made it unattainable by perceiving happiness as a result.

Truth however is that happiness is a choice. And you can't just sit there and wait for happiness to find you...you have to actively decide to be happy and and take steps towards it. You're not just gonna wake up one day full of joy and happiness if you've been feeling low and sad for a long while. It comes from a choice- I will make today a good day and I will be happy. You can't just be passive and let the day run its course. You have to be active and take matters into your own hands. Happiness won't come seek you out and slap you in the face...you have to decide that it's already yours and that you're already happy. It can't be an end goal, because that's just setting yourself up for failure. And personally, I know that feeling very well. I thought I'd be happy when I get abs and lose the extra weight. I did achieve it, but happiness did not follow because I immediately found another thing to focus on that put happiness on hold until another goal is reached. I thought I'd be all set and happy once I finish my Bachelor's degree. Yet again, happiness was nowhere to be found. But at the start of this year, after going through a rough few months where I was the lowest I had been in many years, I realized it (happiness) was up to me.

I realized that happiness is a choice and that nothing was going to change unless I did. So I woke up one day and decided that I was gonna climb out of that darkness that had kept be down for long. I decided that no matter what, I would scratch and climb my way out of there, because no one was going to come as save me. And why would I want to stay longer in it, doing nothing. I'd rather get off my butt and seek a way out. I am not going to sit here and lie and say that everything went smoothly and it was super easy...no, but everything did get better slowly and after a while, I was in a much better place than I had been. And that was all thanks to deciding to be active about happiness and knowing that it was in my own hands to be happy and have good days. I had been feeding myself this miserable dark bullshit for way too long and I knew stuff had to change and it was up to me.

And I guess real growth comes when you get sick and tired of your own bullshit. As I said, it is not necessarily easy and it doesn't mean that you can just be happy every single day now for the rest of your life just because you decided to be so. No, that is not the case. But what's the alternative? You want to stay how you are? You're gonna just sit and wait? Or will you take action and make a decision? Which of these alternatives do you think will give you better results? You can't just be passive and hope happiness finds you. You have to be purposeful and decide that you will be happy, because no one else can be happy for you or make you feel that way. It is up to you and I mean, what have you got to lose? Nothing. Just try, because your mind is so powerful and if you keep feeding it negative and miserable stuff, nothing will change. And I know that from personal experiences. Change your mindset and the way you look and things and things will start to change, I promise. It will take some time, but it will get easier and before you know it, deciding to be happy will just become a habit.