Life is supposed to be a blissful experience; our brains are hardwired to seek pleasure and avoid pain. In fact, when we’re happy, our brains release specific neurochemicals to encourage us to stay in a constant state of happiness.
A number of studies have examined the components of life which equate with happiness. Here we talk about a few ways you can live your life to stimulate the production of these neurochemicals, and live a happy life.
Strong Relationships
There is one characteristics which is the most prominent in happy people – strong social ties.
The happiest 10 percent of Harvard Undergraduates reported having strong social support. Good relationships were a stronger predictor of happiness than student’s university grades, family income, SAT score, age, gender and ethnicity [1].
This finding was not only limited to university students but in the GRANT study, which followed men throughout their entire lives.
Indeed, the researchers of the GRANT study wrote that “connecting with and helping others is more important than obsessing over a rigorous exercise program”. Indeed, the capacity to love, and be loved, is a single strength most clearly associated with subjective well-being at age eighty.
If you’re feeling a bit blue today, spend time with friends. Not spending enough time with the people we love is the one thing we regret the most later in life.
