Is attaining happiness possible?

“The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things”

Everyone is capable of achieving happiness, but the actual attainment of happiness is largely based on our perspective. The age-old adage about the cup of water being half full vs half empty is a great example. In any situation, it’s up to the individual to focus on the positives or the negatives. By taking an optimistic stance, you see the cup as half full. In other words, optimism increases your chances of attaining happiness because of a focus on what you have, instead of bemoaning what you lack.

Personally, I see this purposeful happiness as a strategy of aligning my thoughts and behaviors to create the emotion that I desire: happiness. My purposeful happiness stems from the central tenants of the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Triangle. The CBT Triangle reminds us that emotions, thoughts, and behaviors are all interlinked. To achieve happiness, we must adapt our thoughts and behaviors toward finding pleasure and contentment in the common things.

Atasha Jordan, MD, MBA writes at Be Happy On Purpose.