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I was 41 years old, stretched out on a lounge chair by my pool and reflecting on my life. I had achieved all that I thought I needed to be happy. I had a successful career that helped people, a loving husband, a comfortable home, a great body, and a wonderful circle of friends.

But surprisingly I wasn’t on top of the world. I felt an emptiness inside that the outer successes of life couldn’t fill. I was also afraid that if I lost any of those things, I might be miserable. Sadly, I knew I wasn’t alone in feeling this way.

While happiness is the one thing that we all truly want, so few people really experience the deep and lasting fulfillment that feeds our soul. Our Founding Fathers even guaranteed us the right to pursue happiness, so why aren’t we finding it?

Because we’re looking for happiness, in the words of the old country western song, in “all the wrong places.”

The culmination of my pursuit of happiness was when I discovered a state I call Happy for No Reason, a neurophysiologic state of inner peace and well-being that isn’t dependent on circumstances. I believe this is our essential state.

When you’re Happy for No Reason, you bring happiness to your everyday experiences rather than extract happiness from them. You don’t need to manipulate the world around you to try to make yourself happy. You live from happiness, rather than for it.

Most of us struggle to string together as many happy experiences as we can, like beads in a necklace, to create a happy life. We do our best to find just the right beads that will fulfill us. Being Happy for No Reason, in this analogy, is like having a happy string. No matter what beads we put on our necklace—good and not so good—our inner reality, the string that runs through them all, is happy, and we experience an unshakeable positive state inside.

So, how do we get there?

The only difference between happy and unhappy people is that they have different habits.One of the most prevalent habits that happy people share is believing that the universe is out to support them—that this is a friendly universe. When things don’t seem to be going their way, instead of feeling like victims, they look for the lesson and the gift in the situation. In other words, they believe there is a higher purpose that is supporting their ultimate good.

Practicing this one habit has made a huge difference in my own life. Try it yourself: The next time you face a challenge, take a moment to reflect silently, asking yourself, “If this were happening for a higher purpose, what would it be?” I’m certain that whatever answer you discover will be illuminating, but more importantly you’ll begin tapping into that state of inner peace and well-being on a regular basis.

Remember, when you’re Happy for No Reason, it’s not that your life always looks perfect—it’s that however it looks, you’ll still be happy!

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As the woman's face behind the biggest self-help book phenomenon in history, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Marci Shimoff is one of the bestselling female nonfiction authors of all time, selling more than 13 million copies in 33 languages. She is also a featured teacher in the international film and book sensation, The Secret.

Her book, HAPPY FOR NO REASON: 7 Steps to Being Happy from the Inside Out, offers a revolutionary approach to experiencing deep and lasting happiness. It immediately soared to #1 on many bestseller lists nationwide and debuted at #2 on The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal bestseller lists.

A celebrated transformational leader and one of the nation's leading experts on happiness, success, and the law of attraction, Marci inspires millions of people around the world, sharing her breakthrough methods for personal fulfillment and professional success. Marci earned her MBA from UCLA.

For more information, please visit happyfornoreason.com

Comments (4)

  1. right on marci….all one needs to think/know is, “be thankful for everything, and what did i learn from this(experience)”…(mccool … 2009)

    if we/one could be thankful for EVERYTHING, it would take forgiveness out of the picture….nothing to forgive if ones thankful for everything…what a concept!..haha

    michael

  2. Marci – good article reminding us that it is our attitude and perspective towards events that makes such a difference. Being grateful for what you already have is something I do to stay steady with a strong level of happiness – regardless of circumstances.

  3. If your road you are traveling on is not full of bumps and bruises, you are on the wrong road! We’re here to learn and grow! Nice article Marci!

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