Think about that for a moment, and ask yourself: What does my happiness feel like?
Over the years, Marc and I have asked you to join us in examining the relationship between happiness and hardship. Hardship feels easy to define – a season of financial struggle, a time of personal loss, a period of life marked by tragedies – as the source of ongoing frustration in our lives. But happiness? What exactly is the emotion we call happiness and why do we crave it so badly?
When trying to define happiness, it’s tempting to adopt the “I’ll know it when I see it” mindset. I have no doubt that you will – but Marc and I challenge you to dig a bit deeper. Take just a moment to write down 2–3 specific action steps that you know make you feel happy.
These are what I have written down. For me, my happiness comes from time spent with my loved ones and on the work I deem important. Spending quality, uninterrupted time with Marc and our son Mac brings me great joy. I also find that I am flush with happiness after I’ve conquered a long blog post or read a heartfelt email from a long-time reader.
But here’s the real secret to happiness: what makes me happy may not make you happy. Perhaps your true happiness comes in the silence of an afternoon of meditation, or maybe you find happiness at the end of a long hike up a mountain. Where you find joy is not as important as understanding how you find joy.
In some of our recent blog posts, Marc and I have pushed you to define the obstacles in your life – the struggles standing between you and happiness. Defining our obstacles gives them clarity, and it helps us chart the path to conquering them. The same holds true for happiness: in defining specific actions that drive our happiness, we learn to build those activities into our daily lives.
When we know how to get to happiness, we can be sure that we make it a regular part of our day.
Take time today to define happiness for yourself. If you’ve been making a habit of looking to others for what makes YOU happy, it’s time to give that up. I promise, doing so will make you happier almost instantly.
How do I know this is true? Well, let me ask you this: Have you ever met a happy person who regularly avoids responsibility, blames and points fingers and makes lots of excuses for their unsatisfying life? Me either. Happy people accept responsibility for how their lives unfold. They believe their own happiness is a byproduct of their own thinking, beliefs, attitudes, character and behavior.
You’ve really got to stop worrying so much about what others think. I may find happiness in my writing, but that doesn’t mean that you need to be a writer to be happy. Shut out all the judgmental and well-meaning voices, and listen to yourself only for a while. And don’t worry if your definition of happiness seems incomplete – embracing happiness is an ongoing process.
If you find yourself needing support in that process of embracing happiness, help is here. Today, with great excitement, Marc and I are pleased to announce the grand opening of Getting Back to Happy, a comprehensive online course designed to teach you about the scientifically proven factors that impact happiness. This course provides a detailed, step-by-step plan for improving your confidence, strengthening your approach to relationships, and learning constructive methods for dealing with conflict and adversity as you pursue your most important goals. We invite you to join the supportive Getting Back to Happy community as you learn to define happiness on your own terms.
We decided to create Getting Back to Happy because we wanted to provide even more value to YOU. Earlier this year, we reflected on how else we can help our readers delve deeper into the principles of happiness that propel positive change in all our lives. We searched for a fresh opportunity and found it by sorting through thousands of our blog’s comments and emails.
People like you send us messages every day asking for a more in-depth exploration into the topics we write about on our blog. We’re able to help some folks with this deeper dive through our one-on-one coaching, but that form of engagement is limited by only so many hours in the day.
We also receive a lot of encouragement to do live weekend seminars about the principles and rituals of happiness. That idea is very exciting, although with an infant son, we’re not quite ready for it yet. So, we decided to blend the concept of coaching with the concept of an event into a new, amazing, immersive experience for you.
Getting Back to Happy truly is the go-to resource for anyone serious about taking action to reclaim their happiness and realize their full potential.
We’ve come to appreciate that happiness is much more than just an emotion; it’s a path to growth and fulfillment. Overcoming daily struggles and life stresses isn’t easy. Action is necessary to reclaim the happiness you deserve. Action is required to realize your goals and dreams. Getting Back to Happy takes all of the proven principles we discuss on our blog and in our book, and provides a clear course of action to change your life.
If you’d like to be among the first to gain access, we want to offer you something special. As an early access member, when you enroll this week (offer ends on Nov. 8), you will also receive $1,900 in bonuses:
- Audio versions of all course lessons – so you can listen and learn on the go too. ($400 value)
- One hour of two-on-one Skype, FaceTime or phone coaching with both Marc and me – so we can help you with the course material, or any topic you like ($500 value).
- A full year of personalized email support by Marc and me (not outsourced to someone else) – to make sure you’re getting the daily support you need to create the life you deserve ($1,000 value).
Honestly, Marc and I are so proud of this course. We filled it with our best advice – advice gathered from firsthand experience, nearly a decade of studying and writing about the psychology of happiness and success, and through coaching thousands of people just like you. From proven ways to foster stronger relationships, to actions engineered to help you let go of toxic behaviors, to scientifically proven methods of making progress on your personal and professional goals, the learning modules in this course will inspire and equip you to become your strongest, most effective self.
Getting Back to Happy is perfect for you if you identify with the following:
- Things have changed in my life and I don’t know where to go from here.
- I am committed to positive change, but I feel stuck.
- A relationship I am involved in has become toxic.
- My personal and professional growth has stalled and I want to feel excited about what I’m doing again, and make real, lasting progress.
- I am generally content with my life, but there is more I want to accomplish and I don’t want to become a victim of complacency.
So what choice will you make?
If you choose to take control of your circumstances, then we’d love to welcome you into Getting Back to Happy. (by Marc and Angel Hack Life)