Different things make different people happy. What makes one person happy might not make another person happy. As the old saying goes, “One man’s meat is another man’s poison.”
You are the only one who can know what will make you happy. It is vital therefore, that you take time to think about what you would like to achieve and experience in life.
There are always well meaning people ready to tell you how to live your life. Do not give too much credence to what others tell you. The only person who really knows what is right for you, is you. In my years as a psychologist I met many who had acquired everything they had been told was right for them and would make them happy and they were left feeling disappointed and disillusioned.
Well-meaning people, particularly those who insist they know what’s best for you, only complicate and cloud the whole process and will most often steer you in the wrong direction.
A typical case is that of a young man who had acquired everything his mother and father had told him would make him happy. He had the permanent job, the beautiful wife, the new house, the pedigree dog and an expensive car and he was far from happy.
“I feel let down by my parents,” he said, “even a bit betrayed. Mum and Dad told me these things would make me happy and I’m far from happy.”
You need to follow your own counsel. Failure to do so could land you in a sea of misery. By the way a happy life does not necessarily mean it will be an easy one!
