People and things don't make you happy. YOU do.

It's raining. You got to the store just after it closed, the bus drove off in front of your nose. Your friend doesn't have time for you, your roommates slam the doors too loud, and your back hurts. You forgot to pay the bill, now you have to pay a penalty. Damn it, all that stuff sucks big time, doesn't it? Those are good reasons to be unhappy, right? Right?

WRONG.

I'll tell you a little secret. NOTHING that happens to you or that anybody says or does is a reason for you to be unhappy. There is only ONE single reason why you're ever going to be unhappy:

YOU'RE UNHAPPY BECAUSE YOU'RE UNHAPPY.

Take a minute right now and ask yourself the following question: "Do I want to be a happy person?" Now think about it. Think and then ask yourself another question: "Am I a happy person?" I'll tell you something, chances are you're not.

I see you on the trains and buses, in the streets, cafés, supermarkets and workplaces, and you don't look happy. Even in the clubs and bars, oftentimes you don't look happy. You don't even look okay. Sometimes you look downright MISERABLE. You look like you're waiting for someone to make you happy. Hey, chances are you spend a good part of your day with a stern expression on your face, hanging your head, worrying, frowning and complaining. You feel let down by a friend, you're angry at the impolite bus driver or worried about bad news on the TV.

Guess what: I've seen happy people, and they don't do that. Happy people don't complain or think negative thoughts, they don't worry about what happens tomorrow or even five minutes from now, and most importantly, they NEVER LET ANYTHING RAIN ON THEIR PARADE. They are positive and confident, and at perfect peace with themselves. They look like they don't have a care in the world, and guess what, they don't.

Oh sure, I know what you'll say: "Well good for them. But Matthias, these guys are only happy because their lives are going fine! They don't HAVE anything to complain about!" Well WRONG. It's the other way around: these people have nothing to complain about BECAUSE they'd rather be happy!

Now you'll say: "Yeah right. That just means they're naïve." WRONG AGAIN. Living without health insurance, that's naïve. Denying that there's pain and misery in the world, that's naïve. Ignoring problems is naïve. Not saving up money for hard times is naïve. Being happy, though, is NOT being naïve. It's just being happy, plain and simple.

Who cares what others think? Who cares if it rains, if you're stood up on a date, if you tripped and fell? Right: YOU DO. So STOP it. It's really not that hard to do; all it takes is a little shift of perspective. Check out this conversation between my dad and an old chap I overheard in winter 2008/09 In Germany:

Dad: hey, what's with that weather you ordered?
Old chap: heh, yeah, it's pretty cold, huh? But I'm happy about it.
Dad: why?
Old chap: well, if I wasn't happy about it, it would still be cold, wouldn't it?

BE THAT BLOKE. If you keep expecting that one day you'll be happy, or you depend on the appreciation and attention of others or on things to go your way to be happy, you'll NEVER achieve true happiness. Moreover, you'll be wasting what little precious time you have on this planet.

So get rid of all the negativity and bulls#!%, effective immediately.
This is your life.