As humans, we crave social relationships. We crave connection and love from others. It is hardwired into our brains because we need to work together to ensure the survival of our species. It only makes sense then that forming and maintaining those connections has an internal reward built-in.
And it is our interaction with other people more than anything else that brings us happiness. It isn’t the amount of money we make or have stashed away in a bank account. It isn’t the big house, the fancy car, and all the stuff we accumulate over the years. What makes us happy is spending time and sharing experiences with other people.
Of course not every single person makes us happy. We all have to deal with plenty of people we don’t particularly enjoy spending time with. We do it to work together on a project at the office, because they are our neighbors, or because they happen to work out next to us at the gym. Sometimes our own families fall into this category.
Some people we are ambivalent about, others we’d rather not spend time with given the choice. Yet, there are still benefits to these relationships. We work well together, challenge each other and become better people, and better contributors to society at large when we collaborate. We learn from each other what we like and dislike in relationships. This has its own rewards.
When we are with people we love and whose company we enjoy, on the other hand, we get a lot of joy, satisfaction, and happiness out of those interactions. We have evolved into beings who crave mental, social, and physical connections. There’s a reason almost everyone appreciates a heartfelt hug.
Spending time with people who love and encourage us, and those that challenge us, and make us push harder, helps us grow as human beings. We get better when we have cheerleaders and mentors around us.
There’s a reason people say that you are or will become the average of the five people you spent the most time around. Pick those around you wisely if you want to grow as a person! If your goal is happiness, spend as much time as you can with happy, positive people. Those who make you feel good about yourself and the world around you are those most likely to help you grow.
Above all, make sure you nurture those important close relationships with family and friends who lift you up. Those connections will help boost your happiness and make you feel like you’re part of something bigger that gives meaning to your life.
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Build A Support System of Happy People Around You
Moods are contagious. If you’re around a bunch of sad and depressed people, you’ll start to feel down. If on the other hand, you are in a group of happy people, you can’t help but start to smile. It makes sense then to surround yourself with happy people if you want your own level of happiness to increase.
Does this mean that you should shut all people who aren’t super happy out of your life? Of course not. We all have important people in our lives whom we love and cherish even if they don’t have the sunniest outlook on life. Plus we all have happier and sadder seasons in our lives. It would be horrible if we avoided loved ones during tough times.
Instead, what I suggest is that you take note of who the happy people in your life are. Who are the cheerleaders that will cheer you on no matter what and who put a smile on your face when you spend time with them? Take note of those positive people; friends, family, or even just acquaintances. Build a support system of happy people that you can turn to when you’re feeling down, and with whom you can spend the majority of your time with to keep your vibe up!
Along the same lines, you want to protect your energy from the negative and sad people around you and notice how they affect your mood. When you’re having a hard time and are struggling with your own happiness levels, it may be better to limit the time you spend with people that you know will bring you further down.
Those are the times when you want to spend time with your team of cheerleaders, or your happiness support system. Again, this doesn’t mean that you need to completely shut people out of your life, just take note of their energy and how they affect you and spend time with them accordingly.
When you are happy, don’t be afraid to share that happiness and spread it around. Smiling, laughing, and feeling good about life is contagious. Spread the joy and soak it up from happy people around you when you’re not feeling your personal best.
Call up that friend that can instantly make you feel better, and talk to people around you who love and care for you about this idea of contagious happiness. Let them know when you could use some cheering up and then return the favor.
Because, let’s face it, we all have times when we’re happier and in a much better mood than other days. Make it a habit to build each other up and create that happiness support system for each other. It will make a huge difference in your life and those around you.
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