The 4 Pillars of Happiness

Happiness is never a fixed destination, there is no daily routine we can follow or goal we can achieve that will guarantee us happiness.

There is no magic pill we can take that will make us happy, the closest thing we have discovered is stuffed crust pizza, but unfortunately that only grants us thirty minutes of bliss if we're lucky.

Asking ourselves what will make us happy is often an impossible question to truly answer, an easier, more effective question to ask is what is making me unhappy right now?

Asking this question allows us to find things we can take action on right now.

Usually the things that make us unhappy are things that affect us not just in a single moment but are constantly looming over us.

Having to interact with a single rude person would not make most people unhappy, but if you live in an area that seems where you have to interact with rude people daily, that will certainly start to take a toll.

One shitty day at work is no big deal, everyone has those, but if everyday you dread showing up to the office, that is going to take a huge toll on not only your happiness but your mental and physical health as well.

These are the four things that can take the biggest toll on our happiness, as they are all constantly affecting us. Chances are, if you have these four right, you will be pretty satisfied with your life.

If you have even one wrong, it can quickly become a constant drain and spill over to all other areas of your life.

Environment

Whether we like to admit it or not, our environment plays a huge role in shaping us.

No matter how positive your mindset is, if you live in a rundown crime-ridden area your once unbridled enthusiasm will eventually start to fade or even worse it could make you a target.

Misery loves company.

Different people will thrive in different environments. A person who is in love with arts and music is very unlikely to thrive if they live in Custer County, Idaho. No offense to the fine people of Custer County.

We need to match our environment with who we are as a person, although this might be a very tough decision forcing us to leave behind our beloved hometown, friends and family.

Fortunately, you can always go back to old reliable, so why not take a chance? The worse thing that happens is you realize your hometown really is the place for you, in that case you will have gained a newfound appreciation for it.

Our environment constantly shapes us in ways we are aware of and in many ways in which we are not even conscious of, make sure you put some thought into what you want your environment to shape you into.

Get in shape

You are in your body 24/7, 365 days a year for your entire life, it’s like driving a car except you will never leave the car.

I don’t know about you, but if I was somehow entombed in a car for the rest of my life, I would do everything in my power to make sure it was the best car possible in every way.

If you are extremely out of shape now, this will probably be one of the most difficult things you will ever do, which is good. The hardest things we do in life are always the most rewarding. The lessons we learn along the way are usually more valuable than the actual end goal or result achieved.

The benefits you notice will be absolutely staggering. If you can complete the journey, the increased confidence knowing you can control how your body looks will transfer to every other aspect of your life.

Maybe you think you're ugly, but after losing 40 pounds of fat, you will most likely discover it was just the excess weight making you look bad.

You thought women had no interest in you? More likely it was the fact that you had a pair of breasts larger than theirs. Your energy levels will skyrocket as well, allowing you to finally start that business you always wanted or join a recreational sports team, increasing your social connections.

That’s not even the best part your health will increase across the board as well leaving you less prone to illness and disease, it’s impossible to be happily stuck in a hospital bed.

Maintaining a healthy body is absolutely crucial if we want to live a happy life, it also reduces the guilt of eating two large stuffed crust pizzas.

Job you hate

There is probably no bigger drain in most peoples lives than working a job they hate.

Knowing you have to be somewhere you hate 9–5, 5 days a week wearing that fake smile while a customer lectures you about who knows what, is absolutely soul crushing. It drains you of joy even when you are not working because you are counting down the hours until you have to return to your miserable job.

Quitting your job can be absolutely terrifying, which is why most people stay stuck at their jobs even though they hate it.

What should be more terrifying is wasting over half of your waking life, spending it doing something that brings you no joy. Guess what, if something brings you no joy, chances are you will bring no joy to anyone around you either.

Not to mention, jobs nowadays are just not the same as they were for previous generations. Most don’t offer you any actual security and will be quick to let you go at any moment.

Everybody has an excuse about why they have to stay at their job even though they hate it, but if you keep making excuses, you will never find a way to change your life. There is always another option, but it’s not going to magically appear, it’s up to you to make it happen.

Don’t make excuses and waste half your life working a job that sucks the soul out of you, there is always another way.

Relationships

If you think about the happiest moments of your life, I can almost guarantee that they occurred when you were with other people.

Unfortunately, in our current times, relationships are at an all-time low and so is happiness. People are reporting far fewer friendships than ever before, and fewer people are in relationships than ever before.

One of the great ironies of our ‘connected’ era is that we are more disconnected than ever before.

There are countless people with thousands of followers on Instagram, yet they are without one true friend in real life. They meet with other influencers to collaborate and show off a luxurious yet ultimately unfulfilling lifestyle.

No matter how many people we interact with online, it can never replace true friendship and spending time with people we enjoy face to face.

Relationships can offer us a refuge from a too often cruel and stressful world. If you have loving relationships, it softens the blow of the many pains life will give us. A rough day at the office is much more bearable when you know at 5 o’clock you get to return home to binge-watch that stupid Netflix show with your spouse.

Make sure you put effort into building quality real life relationships, they are what life is all about.

All four of these important aspects of our lives affect us deeply on almost every level. If you aren’t satisfied with life or just feel something is off, make sure you have these four right before looking elsewhere.

There is always hope and a way for things to get better, but sometimes it takes a big change.