You can't buy happiness. You can't just magically make it appear. No one person or thing can fully make you happy, and that just may be the problem. Many people perceive happiness as something you get out of people, things, or activities, but that's not actually the case. Happiness is something you have to find within yourself before anything else. It may be extremely difficult during tough times, but here are some ways to find happiness within yourself:
1. Point out new things you like about yourself.
Once you start finding little things you like about yourself, they will eventually start to add up. Whether it be a feature on your face, or the fact that for some reason, every dog you meet seems to love you, (they say dogs are a good judge of character). As you start to find things you love about yourself, you will begin to actually love yourself more.
2. Stop comparing yourself to others.
This is something every single person in this world does. It's hard not to compare yourself to celebrities and other beautiful people, especially when we all have this messed-up idea of what beautiful is. Just remember, that person you think is perfect, may actually be jealous of you in some ways.
3. Stop using social media as a way to measure happiness.
Social media is something most people use to make their lives seem more interesting and better than they actually are. I'm just as guilty as the next person when it comes to what I post on social media. I choose pictures that make my life look fun and pictures that I think I look good in. I'm also guilty of being extremely jealous of people for having cool photos or posts on their social media. In the end, I just need to remember that most of the time, people's lives aren't as cool as they look, (including mine).
4. Learn from your past.
Most people will say they have many regrets. They may wish that certain people never came into their lives, or that certain events never took place. Instead of regretting these things, be happy you experienced these things so you can learn from them. Be thankful you came out alive and that you are able to make up for it in the future.
5. Strive to better yourself.
If there's something I've learned in the past few years, it's that in order to be happier with myself, I shouldn't try to be better than other people, but instead to be better than my past self. I feel a million times better about myself when people compliment my personality or the way I treat people, than when people compliment my looks. The way you treat people and go about tough situations says more about you than the way you dress or do your make up. Don't wish unhappiness upon people because they wronged you, but instead wish happiness upon yourself because you've gone through a lot, and you deserve it more than anything.
