It has been scientifically proven that gratitude can make you happier. You can start by focusing on expressing gratitude for the good things in your lives, instead on what you are lacking. Writing a list of things you are grateful for in your life on a daily basis is good practice. For example my list for today would be:
I am grateful for…
my health
my family
being alive
having a home
my job
my friends
being surrounded by good people
my food
music
the beautiful sunrise
…and the list goes on and on.
You would think that people that have everything are the happiest, but that is not always the case. That has to do with the fact that they are not aware of all the blessings they have; therefore they are not grateful, keeping them from being happy. There are some other people that have been through hard times and are truly happy people because they are grateful for the little good things in their lives. It is not happiness that makes you grateful, it is gratefulness that makes you happy.
We experience something that is valuable to us. When a combination between something valuable and a real gift come together then gratefulness rises in your heart, and from there happiness does also. The key is that we cannot only have grateful experiences but to be people that live gratefully. The present moment is the opportunity we get as a gift. We need to appreciate the opportunities we get in order to be happy.