9 Ways To Make Yourself Unhappy (Part 1)

In this series of three blog posts, I will give you eight (8) ways to make yourself unhappy…plus a bonus ninth way. I will cover three ways in each of the three posts in this series.

The eight ways come from an article previously published at inc.com titled: The 8  Most Common Ways People Make Themselves Miserable…According To A Philosopher. The philosopher in question is Bertrand Russell, who was a pretty smart guy.

#1 Fashionable Pessimism

Bertrand Russel was a British mathematician and philosopher who lived from 1872 to 1970.

During his lifetime, he pointed out that many people believed acting grumpy and cynical was a sign of great depth and intelligence.

On the other hand, Russell viewed it as a sign of stupidity and needless negativity. If you want to be unhappy, just practice being negative. If you want to add more happiness to your life, try looking for all the positives around you. If you do, you will find plenty of them.

#2 Social Comparison

Russell believed that one of our biggest fears is falling short of our friends and neighbors.

We tend to compare ourselves to others, and when we do, we often feel negative emotions.

Another great way to make yourself unhappy is to frequently compare yourself to others, especially in areas where you fall short.

More modern positive psychologists recommend that if you want or need to compare yourself to something, try comparing yourself to how you’ve grown and improved from a month ago, a year ago, or some other meaningful timeframe.

Again, if you do this and end up feeling negative, try finding the areas where you have improved or done better and focusing on those.

#3 Envy

Envy is another way we tend to compare ourselves to others. Envy causes us to look at what others have or have accomplished and feel bad that they may be gaining more benefits in life (money, fame, love, health, etc.) than we are enjoying.

According to the author of this article on inc.com, Russell believed that if you truly want to be happy, you must cultivate the ability to admire and find joy in other people’s good fortune.

If you can be happy about your own accomplishments and also be happy about the accomplishments of others, you have greatly expanded your opportunities to experience happiness.

More To Come

Those are the first three ways you can make yourself unhappy.

In my second post in this series, I will share three more unhappiness secrets with you.

To Your Health, Happiness, and Success