What to Do When You’re Not Happy in Life

What to Do When You’re Not Happy in Life

July 5, 2023

As much as we’d all love to be happy in life, that isn’t always the case. We can often find that we come across stress at different times in our lives that affect not only how we feel, but our quality of life too. There can also be times that we just don’t feel like we’re living authentically, or that we feel like we are happy with where we are at. Both are also okay. Yet, you will always want to make sure that you aim to make a change so that you can find happiness in life. In this article, we’re going to take a look at how you can do that.

What Happens When Stress and Sadness Take Over

It can feel a little overwhelming when you feel stressed out and you’re not too sure how to handle it. But rest assured that this can be quite normal. It may just be your mind and body’s way of telling you that you need to make a change. Sometimes, you will want to speak to a professional about how you feel, but if it’s just a little nudge that you need to make a change, you’ve got this.

Why Happiness Matters

So now we want to look at exactly why happiness matters. It’s easy to think that you just need to be grateful for what you have and that you should shrug off wanting anything more. But that’s not the case. You deserve to be happy and it’s not selfish or greedy to want that. 

It’s Okay to Want to Change Your Life

Ultimately, you can have whatever you want in life, as long as you’re willing to identify what that is and go. It’s important for you to acknowledge that it’s okay for you to want to change your life. It’s okay for you to want to go after your dreams or earn more money or buy a gorgeous house – or whatever it is. You owe it to yourself to do that, so we’re going to help you.

The 8-Step Process of Finding Happiness

So now that we’ve taken a closer look at why it’s important to be happy and why you need to make a change if you feel a little off in life, we’re going to walk through the steps you need to take to make it happen. Let’s dive into it.

1. Identify What You’re Feeling

First of all, you should think about identifying what’s going on inside of your mind. What is causing you to feel unhappy? Is it your lifestyle? Is it your circumstances? Are you not feeling fulfilled? Or is it deeper than that? This is always the starting point of change.

2. Think About What You Want

Then, you’re going to want to think about the things you actually desire in your life. Sometimes, when you’re not happy, it’s because there’s too much distance between how you’re living now and how you want to be living. So in order for you to close that gap, you have to get a clearer picture about what it is that you want in life.

3. Start With Small Changes

It can often mean that small changes are needed. Not everyone wants to rapidly transform their lives and that’s okay. It could be that you want to change up your habits, get healthier, socialise more, organise your home – all of these things can make a huge difference to how you feel.

4. Think About a Big Move

But at the same time, you may find that it’s actually going to be a big change that you welcome the most. Maybe it’s packing up and finding an expert at selling property that you need. Sometimes, selling your home and moving into a location and a home that feels more in line with your lifestyle and desires. So do it. Even if it feels scary at first, it could lead to more happiness for you.

5. Consider a Career Change

Maybe your career isn’t fulfilling? This can happen for a number of reasons. It can be as simple as you not following your heart in the first place or getting a job that you should you should. But also, even just growing and changing over the course of time and wanting something more suited to you.

6. Prioritise Your Health

Another thing that you’re going to want to do, is focus on prioritizing your health too. If you aren’t taking care of your mind and body, this can lead to negative feelings, low energy, and poor health. Choosing to prioritise exercise and nutrition can really change the way that you feel in yourself. It’s all about finding a way of doing it that feels good to you.

7. Focus on What Lights You Up

You’re also going to want to make sure that you focus on the things that give you joy in your life. It’s easy to get trapped in a negative cycle, but allowing yourself to start a passion project or just pour your heart into things you love in life can turn that around. After all, life gets to be fun when you let it.

8. Believe and Be Consistent

Above all else, you need to believe that you can have the dream home or job and find happiness. That your relationships can be great and your health can prosper. Believing this and staying consistent with your actions and changes can allow you to bring in all the happiness you desire.

Creating the Life That You Really Want

It’s okay to realise that you’re not that happy with your life, but it’s never okay to stay in a sad place. You are in full control of your life and at any moment, you get to decide that you want to make a change. Plus, this doesn’t always mean that a big change is coming. Sometimes, you’ll find that small changes make a huge difference. So it’s just about focusing on what you want and what will make you happy, trying out some of the steps above, and seeing how it will all work for you.

Rachel Bartee is a freelance writer dreaming of a tour around the world to write a story of her greatest life adventure. For the time being, she feels inspired by her daily yoga sessions and her career in copywriting & marketing.