5 Things that stand between you and your Happiness
 

Five Things that Stand Between You and Your Happiness

 

According to the latest World Happiness Report, people in developing nations such as Sierra Leone and Nicaragua are finding more and more things to be happy about, while those in the richest, most developed nations (such as the UK, USA and Canada) are becoming less happy over time. What is causing more discontent in developed nations? And can we reverse this trend?


Dr Dain Heer is an internationally renowned speaker, author and co-creator of Access Consciousness®, a popular set of life tools and philosophies. He maintains that people are becoming unhappier simply because they are losing sight of what happiness is and where it comes from.


“Happiness has nothing to do with what is going on around us; it’s literally a choice we individually make, moment to moment”, Heer advises. “It’s great to hold outside circumstances responsible for our level of happiness – how much money is in the bank, whether the boss is happy, whether we have the right car – but the truth is, you are the only one who can decide to be happy or unhappy in any situation”, he adds.


To understand how much you are in charge of your happiness, Dr Heer suggests you practice the art of choosing contentment. “Start by practicing to be happy, even if it’s just for 10 seconds at a time. You can choose it again as many times over as you like”, he remarks.


In order to find happiness, Dr Heer also advises individuals to be aware of the five things that stand in the way between you and happiness.


Judgement: When you are in a constant state of judgement, either of yourself or others, you are inducing feelings of disappointment, despair or anger. “There is no way to feel happy when you are in this state” Heer says. Whenever you catch yourself judging someone, realise that it is just your point of view. Say to yourself, “I have this point of view. What an interesting point of view” until the judgement disappears.


Love: Love means something different to every single one of us; it is impossible to determine or agree on. “In other words, you can’t get love right, ever. So stop trying”, Heer advises. “Gratitude is what really creates the level of caring and acceptance we try to get from love. The magical power of gratitude is that you can’t have gratitude and judge at the same time.” If you want to kill judgment and get happy instead, get some gratitude going!


Being Right: Everybody has a different point of view and you can spend your time in conflict, trying to convince them that they are wrong, or you can ask yourself “Do I want to be right, or do I want to be happy?”


Saving the World: Serial “problem-solvers” will always find it difficult to find lasting happiness because, as Dr Heer advises “in order to solve problems, you have to have problems.” It is not your place to set the world right according to your points of view and you will have trouble being happy if you are constantly focusing on trouble and strife.


Friends: “Make a list of 3 happy people you enjoy talking to and call them up when you need a boost. Seek out happy friends and don’t hang out with unhappy ones”, Heer suggests. If you have mostly surrounded yourself with unhappy people – get proactive! Try out new things and meet new people.

 

About Dr Dain Heer

Dain Heer is an internationally renowned author, speaker and facilitator of consciousness, and change and for the last 14 years has been inviting people to embrace their true greatness. His book, Being You, Changing the World - Is Now the Time? is published in seven languages. For more information visit www.drdainheer.com