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Is Your Happiness Set in Stone?

Two new studies suggest that happiness is out of your control. Rather, they found that genes and age impact your general well-being more than daily attempts to be happy.

In one study of nearly 1,000 pairs of adult twins, researchers at the University of Edinburgh suggested that genes account for about 50 percent of the variation in people's levels of happiness. The underlying determinant was genetically caused personality traits, such as being sociable, active, stable, hardworking or conscientious.

When the people in the study were asked how happy they were, the identical twin pairs responded much more similarly than other twins, suggesting that happiness has a strong genetic component.

Another larger study found that people tend to fall into a larger, cross-cultural and global pattern of joy. Survey data from 2 million people in more than 70 countries showed that happiness typically follows a U-shaped curve. Happiness starts high, trends downward into middle-age, and then climbs back up among older people if they do not have severe health problems.

YOU -- and not your genes, your family, your age, or your life’s circumstances -- are in control of your happiness.

It’s interesting to note, though, just how the first study above was interpreted. It found that your genes account for about 50 percent of the variation in people’s levels of happiness. Well, even if that were true, that means there’s still another 50 percent that’s up for grabs!

Regardless, just because you have a certain gene does not mean that your body will produce its product. For instance, just because you inherited “unhappy” personality traits from your mother or father, does not mean that you will be unhappy.

This is because the manufacture or expression of your genetic potential has a complex regulation system that is highly intertwined with your emotions. And, yes, you can control the expression of your genes by modifying your lifestyle and balancing your emotions.

So YOU are in the driver’s seat when it comes to your potential for happiness.

Once you realize this simple premise, it is actually quite liberating. You don’t have to feel bad because you’re getting older, or because your life isn’t going exactly as you had planned. You actually don’t have to feel bad for any reason at all, once you make your mind up to be happy.

Bring Happiness in Your Life:

One way to guide your life toward happiness is simply to count your blessings. Research showing that people who pause each day to reflect on the positive aspects of their lives (for example, their health, friends, family, education, freedom) are more likely to experience positive feelings and happiness.

“Don't worry, be happy.” This sounds like such a simplistic phrase, but there is great power and wisdom in it. This tells us to focus on what we want rather than what we don’t want. When we focus on what we want, our actions take us nearer to our goals in life.

These are some principles to concern:

Improve your relationships with friends and family – Happiness starts at home. Start by improving your relationship with your parents, brothers, sisters, and children. Smile when you greet them, do things for them, don't allow them to get angry with you. Maintaining healthy loving relationships and friendships can promote happiness. Remember that love makes you beautiful.

Be an optimist - Optimism generates good feelings.Develop a genuine smile and laugh a lot - Act happy - It works. Smile into the mirror for a half hour without stopping. Smiling makes you happy and the more you smile the more happy you become. We all like people who smile. It also makes us more attractive.Pray - Become religious or spiritual - This only works if you believe in God. If you want to be happy then ask God to make you happy. Prayer helps you accomplish things.

Be generous and share with others - Give more than you receive because being generous will make you happy.Treat time as a friend - Don't watch the clock. Exercise your mind - Keep yourself busy with some new project or ideas.Work your body - Exercise regularly. Studies show that aerobic exercise is an antidote for mild depression and anxiety. "Happy minds reside in sound bodies," says Dr. Myers.

Have fun in life - Keep cool under pressure.Pursue achievable goals. Have high confidence in yourself.Respect the disadvantaged.Age gracefully.Give compliments - Take every opportunity to be complimentary. Want to make someone like you? Every time you meet a person smile and give them a compliment. Be honest - With honesty comes openness. People respect honest and open minded people.Keep an open mind - Most people seem to think that they know everything that they need to know. There's plenty of wisdom to go around.

Treat difficulties as challenges –Life's an adventure and every obstacle in life is one of its challenges. Treat life as a game. What fun would a game be if you could never lose?Being happy is really a choice we make. The secret of Happiness is simple, very simple - what is it? You decide if you want to be happy! Happiness is free. You can feel happiness, this very minute, if you so choose.If you continue to focus all your energy and attention on what you want, you’ll soon find yourself happy. Realize now that true happiness results from sharing generously of yourself, your mind, emotion and spirit, with all those who come in contact with you.

Be an optimist. Do kind deeds for others unselfishly. Explore the deeper resources within you by praying to God from your heart. Through sincere prayer and mindful meditation you will attain the highest achievement in life - the discovery of your eternal happiness with God.We need to set our goals wisely and to develop happy-thought strategies and to surround ourselves with encouraging and positive people.

Pursuing truth, wisdom and a virtuous life - or just getting on with the duties and chores of daily life at work and home, often brings happiness as a by-product. My ultimate goal is to bring happiness to all my friends, family and all souls that come in contact with me. How can I possibly accomplish this?

Simple…Make sure you practice the open minded concept, you’ll get over unhappiness in no time, because you so open minded until you drop your brain out …get it...lol?? Sincerely hope that after reading this message you will SMILE for me. In a sense, hopefully it’ll allows you to give yourself permission to experience happiness in your day-to-day life. Be happy…

Stay Happy And Save Your Life

Harvard researchers also found cardioprotective effects when they followed 1,306 men who had been rated for optimism and pessimism based on responses to a questionnaire administered in 1986.

During the next 10 years, there were 31 deaths due to coronary disease, 243 instances of non-fatal myocardial infarction or documented evidence of coronary heart disease and 60 patients had complaints of angina. Men reporting high levels of optimism had almost half the risk of suffering any of these complications compared to peers classified as being very pessimistic. In addition, a dose-response relationship was demonstrated between levels of optimism and each of the above adverse developments. (Kubzansky LD et al. Psychosomatic Medicine, 2001; 63:910-916)

It had previously been shown that highly optimistic patients had faster recovery rates following coronary artery bypass surgery and were half as likely to be rehospitalized over the next six months for complications or the need for a repeat corrective surgical procedure. (Scheier MF et al. J Pers Soc Psychol 1989; 57:1024–40, Scheier MF et al. Arch Intern Med 1999; 159:829–350)

Cheerful and optimistic heart disease patients were also more likely to live longer than others in a Duke report on 866 cardiac catheterization patients who were asked how much joy they typically felt and completed questionnaires to rate optimism and pessimism.

Over the next 11.5 years there were 415 deaths. It was found that cheerful patients with a positive outlook were 20 percent more likely to be alive than pessimists even after taking into account other factors like smoking and how ill the participants were at the time of catheterization. (Brummett BH et al. Int J Cardiol. 2005; 100:213-216)

Increase Your Happiness by Limiting Choices!

This headline certainly sounds paradoxical. But consider that, not so long ago, there was only one telephone company option, and the phone you rented from that company never broke.

All the choices available nowadays -- VoIP, cellular phones, cable phones and traditional land-line services -- offer more freedom than ever before, but may exact quite a cost on our collective psyches, says psychologist Barry Schwartz in the compelling video linked below.

Schwartz, the author of The Paradox of Choice, believes, rightly, that the "freedom of choice" afforded to us by all these options escalates our expectations, and therefore introduces indecision and unhappiness into the equation.

Sources: Time March 12, 2008, Psychological Science March 2008, 19 (3) , 205–210, Social Science & Medicine April 2008, Volume 66, Issue 8, Pages 1733-1749, TED

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