Don’t we all strive to be happy? It could be something as simple as a loving hug from a dear one or sipping a cup of coffee sitting in your own garden. For some people the meaning of happiness may be a beautiful, big car or financial security or a major award. For many the world over, it may be something as simple as a belly full of food for the entire family or the pride of a child going to school; a privilege that the family had hitherto never enjoyed.

Did you ever ask yourself what are the things that are important for you to be happy? Is it a loving family, a good job, lots of money, lots of possessions, lots of friends, emotional satisfaction, professional satisfaction?

My concept of Happiness

To my mind, happiness is about you and the people dear to you being in a state of peace, of contentment and satisfaction. I think that contentment is the first step to happiness; which is not an absence of ambition, mind (without ambition there is stagnation). It is rather an absence of envy or a ceaseless striving for the unattainable.

Would you be happy if...

If you think that you would be happy, if only you were better looking or thinner or whatever other goal you have, then you would be wrong, because happiness is about a state of contentment or satisfaction with what we have or what we are reasonably likely to achieve. Good health is another component of happiness. Very often we forget to appreciate this simple gift which can make us happy.Health is wealth may be a cliche, but like most cliches is also very true.

The Happiest Country

In fact in a survey of 90 countries conducted, it was found that Denmark was the happiest country in the world and that happiness owed itself largely to the levels of good health in the country. It is useless to deny that prosperity is an indicator of happiness. After all starving in the garret is rarely conducive to a happy state of mind. So prosperity and education were the next determinants of happiness in the survey. These results of Denmark being the happiest has a lot to do with excellent governance: the healthcare and educations system is fully taken care of by the government, as is care of the elderly.

The Happiest Man is a Garbage Collector

One Danish garbage collector who was interviewed, Jan Dion says he's an eight out of 10 in terms of happiness. He said he doesn't mind collecting garbage for a living, because he works just five hours in the morning and then can spend the rest of the day at home with family or coaching his daughter's handball team. Dion says no one judges his choice of career, and he actually loves what he does because he has many friends along his route. It makes him happy when he sees the children who wave to him and the old ladies who bring him cups of coffee.

So what is your happiness indicator? Happiness can be an elusive thing; sometimes we need to look for it in what we have. Do you remember to count your blessings or do your probelms outweigh them?