Are you happy?

In the process of self discovery, it brings us face-to-face with our deepest self-doubts and insecurities. It evokes within us the courage to take a serious look at the way we are leading our lives and put a question to it.

As we dwell on the topic of happiness, it does not run away from the fact that embracing ourselves fully is the first step to contentment.

Heading into my late 20s, I have discovered that the relationship I have with myself is at the core of how much joy I experience in life. We are radiant and undoubtedly confident when we are comfortable in our own skin.

We all hold the key to our own happiness. But once too often, as we navigate our way through varying social settings we get better at concealing our emotions, to the extend that we believe we are happy even at moments when we are not.

When we start validating and reshaping our beliefs and values based on the narrative of others, we become more dependable on external factors in search of happiness. For fear that we may appear as an 'oddball', we buy into the narratives of others and behave the way they behave. We find excuses to beat ourselves up when we do not seem to meet the expectations of others.

Do you remember the time when we were toddlers, before we were taught to conform to the ideals of what we should or should not be?

We were most at ease with ourselves. Due to lack of inhibition, we laughed hard, we cried harder, we went through trials and errors and laughed even more.

Always curious as a child, we never knew the boundaries when it comes to asking “why”. We were once sincere in questioning the world. At the edge of adulthood, we started to feel like we have seen it all and starts believing “the world is how it is, just live your life the way you are supposed to live and stop asking irrelevant questions.” But are you happy?

Without over-analysing the question, what would be your hair-trigger answer? It may be one of the simplest questions, but often times we failed to give an honest answer, even to ourselves.

If your answer is a “no” or “I don’t know”, well perhaps we may rephrase the question by asking: what do you love and enjoy doing? Let your love for it ignites the passion within you. Invest your time, thought and focus on the things you love. Get more involved in activities that moves you.

While we have our emotional highs and lows (because c’est la vie), make a conscious choice to be grateful and celebrate the little things — to look at what we have, rather than what is lacking.

Be mindful of our choice of words as we go about our daily lives. Make it a choice to find the good, the positive, the beauty in ourselves and others, and in life.