We all want to be happy, and we all have different ways of trying to achieve happiness. But as it turns out, you might be going about it all wrong.
June Gruber, a professor of psychology at the University of Colorado Boulder joined HuffPost Live host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani to discuss some of the key ingredients we need to be happier.
“Happiness has a few key ingredients; it’s not one single thing," said Gruber. "There’s feelings, thoughts, behaviors and even the way our body responds."
Asked to discuss how people can measure happiness in their everyday lives, Gruber highlighted a common mistake people make in their search for fulfillment.
“If your spotlight is so strongly focused on how you can become happy, that actually backfires, paradoxically, and people report feeling less happy the more they try to pursue it,” explained Gruber. “Don’t focus on the pursuit of happiness; focus on other people, things you’re grateful for and doing things for others as opposed [for] yourself.”
To hear more of the conversation, watch the full HuffPost Live clip in the video above.