Let Happiness Find You
Trying too hard to be happy will only end up making you sad, let your negative emotions guide you to positivity.
I personally think happiness is not found by the end result, but it is found through the process of it all. I believe that happiness is found through all of the little things that happen during our journey of life.
Accepting how you feel in moments and situations is important. Being happy is a great feeling and yes, we all want to feel that way, but our minds and bodies have so many more emotions than that. If you ever feel down or sad, you have to accept that it is ok to feel that way once in awhile.
You should never put pressure on yourself to be happy at a certain moment, because feeling other emotions is completely normal and healthy.
Instead of always thinking about the end result, we should be enjoying life in the heat of the moment. The pressure to be happy is always there, and it will probably never stop being there.
Social media can be a terrible outlook on what it's like to be "happy." It mainly shows us idealized pictures of people's "perfect" lives, and they hardly ever show us the behind the scenes of what really happens in their day to day lives. It comes to the point where we think everyone else has achieved so much in life, and are so happy with where they are in life, and we have yet to feel that same way.
However, in reality, we as humans all go through many emotional roller coaster rides throughout our lives. Instead of focusing strictly on being happy, set goals for yourself that give you some kind of purpose in life. It is so important to stay positive, but that doesn't mean you cannot be unhappy before you achieve some sense of happiness. Ignoring sad moments will only end up making those moments worse for you.
Trying too hard to be happy will make you obsess over the unhappiness in your life and you may end up feel like you are failing. This does not help you. We spend too much time thinking about ways to be happy or trying to be happy without cause. For example, finding a boyfriend/girlfriend or making as much money as you can. These things can also cause us to settle for things that end up making us upset in the long run.
Never search or chase happiness. You will figure out that all it does is run away from you. Instead, focus on the things around you in your life that make you happy every day. Appreciate the little moments, like listening to your favorite song while getting ready for the day, or coming home from a long day at work and seeing your dog jump for joy because you are finally by their side again.
Don't set too many expectations for things either. Life isn't always fun, remember that everyone has bad days. Be happy. Not because everything is perfect, but because you choose to focus on the little, perfect moments.