How to be happy? What actually is happiness? It means something different to everyone, but we all have one thing in common. We are all looking for happiness and set out on all kinds of life adventures to find it. After all, who doesn’t know perhaps the most famous line from the film Škola základ života (School, the Basis of Life), based on a poem by Adolf Heyduk.
“Happiness? What is happiness? Just a little golden fly…..”
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What is happiness?
People see happiness either as a fortunate event that brings you what you wish for, or as a certain inner feeling of contentment and bliss. However, don’t expect an official definition that applies to all of us. For some people, happiness means being healthy. For others, it is a luxury car and a house in the suburbs. It always depends on your point of view.
Still, there are certain generally valid elements and features that will help you become happier. Since scientists also study this question, there are tips and advice on how to create your own happiness and how to perceive it, so that you don’t chase after something that probably won’t bring it to you.
Happiness is also not a constant state or emotion. People have to go through some suffering, challenges and harder times in order to appreciate the times when they are happy. Simply put, even a very happy life has to include periods of low energy and crisis.
How to be happy, psychology
So what does science say? The question is studied by what is known as positive psychology. It looks for answers to what affects our feelings of happiness and what makes us content. Researchers examine the difference between “those who are blessed” and “when luck just isn’t on our side”. The founder of positive psychology is Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania.
According to Professor Seligman, happiness consists of so-called hedonic happiness (feelings of pleasure, for example when eating) and a meaningful life (achieving our goals and so on). His theory rests on 3 pillars:
- A pleasant life (a life in which we experience as many pleasant, positive things as possible)
- An engaged life (in such a life we devote ourselves to activities we enjoy)
- A meaningful life (things that go beyond satisfying our own needs, and so on)
Daniel Kahneman considers happiness a complex feeling that cannot be measured only on the basis of what we are experiencing at the moment. As an example, he points to the difference in how we perceive a past experience. If you have an unpleasant journey to an amazing view, you describe the trip as wonderful, because at the end of the journey there was an amazing experience. If you go to a long-awaited concert whose finale ends on a wrong note, you associate it with the feeling that it wasn’t very good.
However, both agree that to feel happy, it is important to achieve our goals. That is why it is good to know your strengths and develop them. A complex feeling of happiness can therefore, according to this theory, be built on positive emotions, good relationships with the people around us, engagement, meaning and also the effort to succeed.
This explains why we so often find that people who want to experience happiness look for answers to the question: “How to be successful?”. Success is linked not only to material satisfaction but also to the good feeling that we have achieved something and that we are good at it. Developing our strengths and the success that follows therefore fills us with a sense of happiness.
11 tips, how to be happy
And how can you be happy even when luck isn’t on your side? It depends on what matters to you and on being able to look at yourself and your life from a distance. Knowing what matters to you and what you can draw on, even when things aren’t at their best. Happiness is something you can “consciously recognise”.
1. Do you know your priorities?
What matters to you? Do you have family and friends? Are you healthy, do you have a roof over your head and a job? Then, in essence, you have everything you need. Try to realise that even today this is a great luxury. If you feel safe every day, try to imagine how people on the other side of the world feel, where war and unrest rage. Compared with them, you have a truly happy life.
2. Do things that make you happy
You should do things that make you happy as often as possible. Do you enjoy spending time with family or friends? Go and see them today. Does exercise make you happy? Go for a run. Do you feel good doing your hobbies? Then make time for them. Don’t put these activities off, because they give you a good feeling, and thanks to that you feel happy in your life.
3. Nature, nature, nature!
Don’t forget to spend time in nature. Whether you believe it or not, our brain needs oxygen. Without fresh air we feel tired and slip into apathy. Above all, the sun is, as we know, a source of vitamin D, which protects us from depression. When you walk through a meadow scented with hay while the sun is shining, you experience positive feelings.
4. Exercise again
Yes, unfortunately you can’t do without exercise here either. As you have surely read countless times, during exercise, or rather physical exertion, the body releases endorphins, the so-called happiness hormones. You don’t have to sweat it out in the gym straight away, but go outside, run, jump. On trips you will discover the beauty of nature and get a good workout at the same time.
5. Be grateful
You hear it often, but it’s true. If you value the “little” you have and you are well aware that you are lucky to have a place to live, that your child is healthy, and that your husband loves you, then you are experiencing happiness in your life. Every evening, try to pause and reflect that you are grateful for what you have. Scientists also say that people who are aware of this are happy in life.
6. Meditate and listen to your body
Meditation can free you from stress and phobias. It can show you the way to your true self and help you accept yourself as you are. If you can “stop”, you become aware of the present moment and truly live it. Once you learn to listen to your body and love yourself, you will stop searching. Meditation is certainly one of the ways to be happy with yourself.
7. Love and care for others
Do you want to know how to be happy in life? Then be happy in your relationship. We are a species that needs to live in a social group. When you are with someone you love, this feeling fulfils you and gives your life meaning. Keep up good relationships with your family and friends. Their presence can be vitally important to you.
8. Love what you do
Apart from spending time on your hobbies and the things you enjoy, it is important to learn to love what you do. Especially at work. When you do something you don’t enjoy and can’t stand, you slide into depression, and the way out is difficult. If you can’t choose right now, learn to love your job and look for the positives and meaning in it.
Choosing a job is very important and will greatly affect your quality of life. If you don’t enjoy your job, try working or starting a business in a field that you enjoy and find interesting. When people do something they enjoy, they are not only happy but, above all, they excel at it.
9. Make the most of little things
Being able to enjoy little things is a very useful quality. Try to learn it. Is the sun shining outside? Does the bouquet your friend has just brought you smell lovely? Did your morning coffee turn out really well today? Is the poppy seed pastry with your coffee just perfect? After watching your favourite court shoes for a month, have they been reduced by 30%? All the little things you can enjoy plant that “seed of happiness” in your life.
10. Help others and bring joy
Try to be kind and good to the people around you and to nature. It’s a bit of a cliché, but it has been proven that a good deed brings a good feeling. Will you really miss 100 CZK (about 4.6 USD) from your monthly pay, or could you donate it to the dog shelter in your town? Is last season’s jumper no longer for you? Give it to a friend. There are surely plenty of small things like this that won’t affect you.
11. Health and sleep
What did you expect? Without a healthy lifestyle and good-quality sleep, it simply doesn’t work! When we eat badly, our body and mind react accordingly. It has been proven that poor food or drink contributes to a bad mood and tiredness. The same applies to sleep: it is essential for recovery and for the body to function properly. Treat yourself to calm and sufficient sleep. That doesn’t mean lying around all day, just getting enough rest (for both body and mind). A healthy diet improves your quality of life in the long term.
How to be happy in life
It’s like a puzzle. A few small pieces are enough for us to be happy. Scientists have found that the short-lived feelings of pleasure that material satisfaction brings us are not enough for happiness in life. So don’t chase after a stunning house, an expensive car and a Vuitton handbag. They will only dazzle you for a while, but after the disillusionment, reality will return.
Live HERE AND NOW! With the things you have available and the people you live with. You have what you have and it is up to you “what tune you can play with it”. After all, “An expensive piano does not guarantee the best concert”. Don’t worry about how to be popular, or how to be successful, be happy simply because you exist. Even that may change tomorrow.
USD amounts are approximate, converted at the Czech National Bank rate of 21.75 CZK per USD on 9 October 2026.
