The Happiest People in the World Think Differently

Knowing their perceptions could change your life.

Ric Burnett
4 min readDec 31, 2020
Photo by MI PHAM on Unsplash

If you believe the narratives regarding finding, achieving, or owning happiness, your mind may envision dense jungle quests and treasure maps. Similar to explorers from our favorite tales, we’re constantly seeking the next thing to provide a taste of the dangling carrot perpetually out of reach. Like a desert oasis, it dissolves into wisps of memory, leaving us wondering why we can’t hold on. Are we incapable, broken, damned? Or is the story we’ve been fed critically flawed? What if happiness isn’t a treasure to be found, a destination reached, or something discovered after a subsequent pay bump? Beliefs from around the world help shed light on why Americans struggle to find happiness now more than ever before and provide unique insights by defining what happiness means to others.

Happiness is a skill

Maybe happiness is not something you inherit or even choose, but a highly personal skill that can be learned, like fitness or nutrition. — Naval Ravikant

The easy pill to swallow is the fact no two people find happiness the same way. As individuals, it makes sense. If we did, a simple formula would cure the world’s sadness and allow us to achieve our dreams. Reality isn’t that convenient.

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Ric Burnett

Looking to find my place in the world and using experiences as guidance. Traveling, talking about life, and personal growth drive me.