What else could be added to this moment right now that could give you more happiness than you currently feel? Are you a good temperature, not too hot or too cold? Do you have enough food to eat today? Do you have shelter to protect you from the weather? Are you safe and comfortable in your bed at night?
Do you have an immediate problem in front of you right this moment – is your electricity is about to be cut off if you don’t pay your bill today?
If all of your physical needs are met and you don’t have any immediate and pressing emergencies in front of you right now, then you have all you need to experience happiness in this moment.
All other concerns and problems are in relation to your thoughts and/or your mood and emotions (which are intrinsically connected to your thoughts).
By observing, disciplining and changing your lines of thought and your moods and emotions, you can experience greater happiness.
By realising this, you have great power to change how you perceive your life. You have to make the decision to want to experience inner peace and happiness and have this as a priority in the background of your life experiences.
This isn’t an overnight change, this is an ongoing process for most people as we are habitual creatures and like to worry, overthink, get angry, feel wronged and justified, like we often have done for the whole of our life to now.
But once you realise that happiness is an internal decision and not an external experience, you then have the power to start making internal changes towards the direction of feeling more peaceful, contented and fulfilled.
In Buddhism, it is often considered that one of the quickest ways to feel happy is to help others and to reduce your “need” for more material objects.
Good activities to start helping this shift are:
- Practising gratitude daily
- Practising meditation daily
- Practising some of the many mindfulness techniques daily
- Saying yes to life
- Being even kinder and more generous to others
- Helping others wherever you can
- Smiling, chatting and being friendly to others
- Being kind to yourself and prioritising your self-care