The pursuit of happiness is assumed by many people to be the purpose of living. But do we need to pursue it, can’t we just be happy because that’s what we chose to be?
Sonja Lyubomirsky is a psychologist who has studied happiness. In her book The How of Happiness, she says –
“Happier people are more sociable and energetic, more charitable and cooperative, and better liked by others…happier people are more likely to get married and to stay married, and to have a richer network of friends and social support…they show more flexibility and ingenuity in their thinking and are more productive in their jobs. They are better leaders and negotiators and earn more money. They are more resilient in the face of hardship, have stronger immune systems and are physically healthier. Happy people even live longer.”
Another eminent happiness researcher was psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. He discovered that people were the happiest when they were in the state that he called flow. Flow is when we are involved in an activity to the extent that nothing else matters. Our ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement and thought follows inevitably from the previous one. Your whole being is involved, and you’re using your skills to the utmost. But what is the flow state, how do you access it and what is achievable for you when you do?
On this Just Two Things podcast I explore the idea of happiness and how to achieve it and the state of being called Flow.
