The Secret To True Happiness

Happiness - Smiley Faces in Crowd I came across an interesting quote made by a psychologist named Theodore Reik nearly 50 years ago. It went, “In order to be happy oneself, it is necessary to make at least one other person happy.” He went on to say, “The secret to human happiness is not in self-seeking, but in self-forgetting.” What this means is that we humans do not have the capacity within our individual selves to make us happy. Rather, we have to reach out to others and touch them in ways that make them happy before we can be happy. In other words, if we focus on making those around us happy, our own happiness will take care of itself. And, the more people we make happy, the happier we’ll be. So, what are you waiting for? Reach out to those around you and touch them in ways that make them happy–smile, say something that brightens their day, hand them a flower, give them a hug, shake their hand or pat them on the back. Do this for just one day and at the end of that day, take stock of how you feel about yourself. You’ll find that Mr. Reik is right!