Are You Genuinely Happy?

5 questions to ask yourself to reach clarity and move forward.

I recently had an “aha” moment I realized I don’t need a self-help book anymore because I’m finally genuinely happy!

When I made the decision to change my life in 2014 after years of burnout, stress and subsequent chronic illness, my self-help book was my bedside companion. Every morning, I would read a page to get motivated and face the day ahead of me happier and in a more positive frame of mind.

I will never forget the power of a little book called “ Love your life 100 ways to start living the life you deserve” by Dominique Bertolucci’. I still cherish this book but I can put it down for now and pick it back up should I ever need a quick positive mental attitude fix. For now, however I will thrive on my genuine happiness to keep me moving forward.

So how about you? Are you genuinely happy?

1. Are you an optimist?
   Being optimistic enables us to fair out better in all areas of life, whether it’s work, college, sports, or relationships. The ability to see the bigger picture and avoid the worst case scenario can lead to a heightened sense of gratitude in life and increased happiness. Optimists get depressed less often, and they tend to live happier and more fulfilled lives.
2. Are you telling yourself the truth?
   To be genuinely happy we have, to be honest with ourselves first. Then we can create a life we love and live it to the fullest. We need to stop telling ourselves distortions of our truth and admit if there is something wrong so we can change it and be happy. The more we tell ourselves its grand, the more we believe it and the further away from living our life happy and creating our reality we move.
3. Do you feel alive and living your life to your full potential?
   Knowing our purpose and finding our “why” in life will empower us to take on board challenges that help us grow. Being mentally and physically nourished will inspire us to keep stretching enabling confidence and genuine happiness in life. People who live their lives knowing their true potential is realized and with a sense of purpose live fulfilled and in harmony with what they value most in life.
4. Do you know your core values?
   Core values are the things that we believe are significant to the way we live. Values give us a reference for what is good, useful, meaningful, and constructive in our life enabling us to determine what is important to us and plan our priorities in this regard.
   Knowing our core values is the key to guaranteeing our life is aligned with them so we can live and honor them and increase our level of genuine, authentic happiness in life.
5. What does being genuinely happy look like for you?
   This question is related to core values but once we have reached clarity on our values we need to ask ourselves this question honestly. Say for example family is a core value and you have been asked to take a promotion that involves spending more time away from them, would that make you genuinely happy in life?

Enjoy the knowledge and self-empowerment that comes with the pursuit of your genuine happiness and reap the rewards it will bring for your future.

“If you want to be happy, be”-Leo Tolstoy

Originally published at medium.com