There are a lot of advantages to being a happy person. Studies consistently show happy people enjoy benefits ranging from better relationships and improved health to enhanced creativity and better problem-solving skills. It seems as though people are trying harder than ever to be happy these days. Yet, the pursuit of happiness doesn’t always have a happy ending. If you’re making any of these mistakes, your efforts to increase your happiness could backfire: 1. Comparing Yourself to Other People It can be tempting to compare your life to the lives of those around you – and one of the most common ways people draw social comparisons on social media. But, social media comparisons aren’t a good yardstick for measuring happiness. Comparing your life to someone else’s highlight reel will undermine your well-being. Scrolling through Facebook to view other people’s vacation photos, doctored selfies, and proclamations of success can cause you to think your life doesn’t measure up. Studies even show that envying your friends on Facebook can actually lead to depression. So rather than turn your quest for happiness into a competition, stay focused on your own journey to a better life. 2. Placing Too Much Emphasis on Being Happy A 2011 study concluded, “Valuing happiness may lead people to be less happy just when happiness is within reach.” If you expect that you ‘should’ be happy, you may grow discouraged when your emotions don’t match your expectations. Self-defeating thoughts like, “I’ve got a good marriage, great kids, and a nice job – I should be happier,” will cause you to feel worse. Avoid judging yourself for not being happy enough. Focus on enjoying the moment. When you stop creating emotional expectations, you’ll experience more contentment. 3. Putting a Timeline on When You’ll be Happy It’s likely everyone has thought a specific event or change in circumstances would ignite their happiness. While one person may say, “I’ll be happy when I lose weight,” another might assume, “I’ll be happy when I’m retired.” But waiting for – and planning on – external events to make you happy will only lead to disappointment. Research shows that everyone has some sort of happiness baseline. So while a new chapter in your life may provide an initial boost to your happiness, the positive effect will eventually wear off. So don’t wait until you get married, have a better job, move to a new city, or have kids to be happy – seize the moment and enjoy today.[b]There are a lot of advantages to being a happy person. Studies consistently show happy people enjoy benefits ranging from better relationships and improved health to enhanced creativity and better problem-solving skills. It seems as though people are trying harder than ever to be happy these days. Yet, the pursuit of happiness doesn’t always have a happy ending. If you’re making any of these mistakes, your efforts to increase your happiness could backfire: 1. Comparing Yourself to Other People It can be tempting to compare your life to the lives of those around you – and one of the most common ways people draw social comparisons on social media. But, social media comparisons aren’t a good yardstick for measuring happiness. Comparing your life to someone else’s highlight reel will undermine your well-being. Scrolling through Facebook to view other people’s vacation photos, doctored selfies, and proclamations of success can cause you to think your life doesn’t measure up. Studies even show that envying your friends on Facebook can actually lead to depression. So rather than turn your quest for happiness into a competition, stay focused on your own journey to a better life. 2. Placing Too Much Emphasis on Being Happy A 2011 study concluded, “Valuing happiness may lead people to be less happy just when happiness is within reach.” If you expect that you ‘should’ be happy, you may grow discouraged when your emotions don’t match your expectations. Self-defeating thoughts like, “I’ve got a good marriage, great kids, and a nice job – I should be happier,” will cause you to feel worse. Avoid judging yourself for not being happy enough. Focus on enjoying the moment. When you stop creating emotional expectations, you’ll experience more contentment. 3. Putting a Timeline on When You’ll be Happy It’s likely everyone has thought a specific event or change in circumstances would ignite their happiness. While one person may say, “I’ll be happy when I lose weight,” another might assume, “I’ll be happy when I’m retired.” But waiting for – and planning on – external events to make you happy will only lead to disappointment. Research shows that everyone has some sort of happiness baseline. So while a new chapter in your life may provide an initial boost to your happiness, the positive effect will eventually wear off. So don’t wait until you get married, have a better job, move to a new city, or have kids to be happy – seize the moment and enjoy today.[/b]There are a lot of advantages to being a happy person. Studies consistently show happy people enjoy benefits ranging from better relationships and improved health to enhanced creativity and better problem-solving skills. It seems as though people are trying harder than ever to be happy these days. Yet, the pursuit of happiness doesn’t always have a happy ending. If you’re making any of these mistakes, your efforts to increase your happiness could backfire: 1. Comparing Yourself to Other People It can be tempting to compare your life to the lives of those around you – and one of the most common ways people draw social comparisons on social media. But, social media comparisons aren’t a good yardstick for measuring happiness. Comparing your life to someone else’s highlight reel will undermine your well-being. Scrolling through Facebook to view other people’s vacation photos, doctored selfies, and proclamations of success can cause you to think your life doesn’t measure up. Studies even show that envying your friends on Facebook can actually lead to depression. So rather than turn your quest for happiness into a competition, stay focused on your own journey to a better life. 2. Placing Too Much Emphasis on Being Happy A 2011 study concluded, “Valuing happiness may lead people to be less happy just when happiness is within reach.” If you expect that you ‘should’ be happy, you may grow discouraged when your emotions don’t match your expectations. Self-defeating thoughts like, “I’ve got a good marriage, great kids, and a nice job – I should be happier,” will cause you to feel worse. Avoid judging yourself for not being happy enough. Focus on enjoying the moment. When you stop creating emotional expectations, you’ll experience more contentment. 3. Putting a Timeline on When You’ll be Happy It’s likely everyone has thought a specific event or change in circumstances would ignite their happiness. While one person may say, “I’ll be happy when I lose weight,” another might assume, “I’ll be happy when I’m retired.” But waiting for – and planning on – external events to make you happy will only lead to disappointment. Research shows that everyone has some sort of happiness baseline. So while a new chapter in your life may provide an initial boost to your happiness, the positive effect will eventually wear off. So don’t wait until you get married, have a better job, move to a new city, or have kids to be happy – seize the moment and enjoy today.