Is there a formula for happiness? Back in 2014, a team of scientists at UCL in London were commissioned with the task of discovering the happiness formula.
Now, after testing 18,420 participants, they came up with the following happiness equation:
H = S + C + V
H stands for Happiness,
S stands for your Cellular Set Point,
C stands for Conditions of living, and
V stands for Voluntary actions or choices you make daily
The interesting part of this formula for happiness was the percentage breakdown of the different parts. They found them to be as follows: 50% of your happiness is actually made up by your cellular set point.
Conditions of living make up only 10% of your happiness. That's it. Just 10%.
And the other 40% goes to voluntary actions or choices you make daily.
In an attempt to be happier, most people actually focus on the major part of their attention on changing their conditions of living. But as the equation shows, that only makes up 10% of your happiness. So let's look at each of these individually.
S = Cellular Set Point
The S stands for your Cellular Set Point. This is really your balance point that all of your cells, including your unconscious mind, will always try and find a way to return to.
Some people have a higher set point so their average day will actually be happier than someone else's.
So how do you actually increase your cellular set point? The majority of your time needs to be spent feeling the feelings of what you want through activities like visualisation, meditation or contemplation.
Any activity that replicates these feelings, the feelings of happiness, will increase your cellular set point because they will actually create new foods for your cells to get hooked on.
C = Conditions Of Living
The letter C in the formula for happiness stands for conditions of living.
Now no matter how much you change your conditions of living by buying material things, it will never ever actually have a huge impact on your happiness because it will always be 10% of your actual happiness.
The happiness that actually comes from shopping is actually quite transient. Research shows that the happiness you get from shopping actually only lasts one to three days.
Yet, this is still the number one way that human beings use to get happier and to gain their happiness across the planet, in any country.
Why? Because this is all due to the fact that marketing and the media have convinced us that this is going to make us happy. But, unfortunately, this type of happiness is temporary.
So think about this for a second, and ask yourself this question - How much time do you actually dedicate to increasing your conditions of living?
You may find that a large majority of your time is spent to make more money so you can buy the next latest thing or do the next latest thing to change your condition of living. But as you begin to realise how little an effect it actually has on your happiness, you may find that now is a good time to rewrite some of your goals.
V = Voluntary Actions Or Choices
The last one is the one that I actually like the most. It is the letter V in the scientific formula for happiness which stands for Voluntary Actions or the choices you make daily.
Ask yourself this question - When something happens to you during the day, what sort of meaning do you give it?
Is it an empowering meaning or a disempowering meaning?
And based on that meaning, what type of voluntary choice or action do you take as a result?
When something happens in your life, take control of the meaning, and then, off the back of that meaning, take an action that's actually going to drive you towards being happier.
In Conclusion
We hope you found this post useful. Just remember, if you want to become happier in your life, H = S + C + V!
Want more effective and actionable advice on how to become a happier and better version of yourself? Watch our free webinar, "How To Coach Yourself To Success", here.
Read more about: Mindset
