by Paul Ruth

Created on: February 04, 2009   Last Updated: February 23, 2009

It is very easy to overlook the easiest and most obvious aspect of being happy. Happiness is a choice. Yes, that is right, one can choose to be happy. Many times people look at formulas and quick answers, but in reality they will only work as well as someone chooses to make them work. For example, it common to see the highly religious as being happy. They also have chosen to be in that type of life style. In a broader example, you may notice that some people are either always happy, or always unhappy. This observation comes across all social, economic, racial, and ethnic lines. There always seem to be those who are, or are not happy.

This develops based on the belief that people, no matter what, are generally the same. It is fairly naive to think that some people just do not have as many problems as others. Now, of course there are some who have it worse off because of political and person situations, such as childhood abuse, and war, or genocide. But, if we look at people who do not fall into these outlying situations, one could see that some are just happier than others.

The question, is why? One solution is given above, but why do some people choose to be happy and some do not? Well. it comes down to the basic factors in life. Family is often attributed as aiding in the happiness scale, but what of you come from an un-happy family? Fulfillment in life is also a common point or argumentation for the success of happiness, but what if you find only a void instead of a light later in life? People rrun into road blocks in a lot of these things that are supposed to make us happy. People disappoint one another, careers become jobs at time, money can lead to loneliness, and hope can seem distant.

A society often forgets the power to choose. Humans naturally tend to fall into submission of some type. People become board, and un-interested quicker than we anticipate. People come to times in life where happiness does not seem possible. Happiness though relates more to a person's outlook rather than place or circumstance. It is easy to place the blame, or to look at things to make us happy. It is part of the human submissive state. If one chooses not to accept, chooses to become an individual, chooses to build their own path, then they would be choosing happiness.

People often forget what they do not want to hear. You have to work at being happy. Look at the millionaire who has worked for every dollar he or she has and the millionaire who has inheirited their wealth. Who is happier? Those who work at things they like, no matter what it is, are those who are the most happy. You can see this in the poor social worker, or the stock market tycoon, or the person who works at writing just for fun. What must be remembered is that working is a choice. If you choose to work you are choosing to be happy.

Happiness is a choice of how to live your life. If one changes the outlook they will change themselves. In order to change, one must give themselves the freedom of choice.

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