A doctor who developed the ‘formula for happiness’ has revealed a simple new way to test how satisfied you are with your life.
Alphonsus Obayuwana is a physician-scientist and happiness coach who has been researching human hope and happiness for thirty years.
He says that if you can say these six sentences with confidence, you will live a happier and more hopeful life than most people.
Dr. Alphonsus Obayuwana says that if you can say these six sentences with confidence, you will live a happier and more hopeful life than most people.
Obayuwana’s formula for happiness is Hope ÷ Hunger = Happiness. This essentially means that the more hopeful and less hungry you are, the happier you are.
But he doesn’t mean hunger in the typical sense. This type of hunger refers to “a compelling desire or longing for inclusion and recognition, intimacy and familiar companionship, food and comfort, information and answers, and continuity and certainty.”
Hope comes from high self-esteem, strong human relationships, financial self-reliance, sufficient knowledge, and spiritual security.
To use the formula, you first need to measure your hopes and happiness. Obayuwana has created a 12-question survey to help you do this. It only takes five minutes to complete.
Once you have your Hope and Hunger scores, plug these values into the formula to calculate your Personal Happiness Index.
If you want to test your life satisfaction further, try saying these six simple phrases out loud. If you can recite them with confidence, you’re probably happier than the average person, Obayuwana says.
1. ‘Generally speaking, I am an optimist’
If you consider yourself an optimist, it means that you “habitually choose the most favorable interpretation of events and outcomes from the past, present, and especially the future,” Obayuwana wrote in an article for CNBC.
This means that you probably have a high hope score and therefore a higher Personal Happiness Index.
“For an optimist, the future is full of hope, while for the pessimist it is full of hunger or unfulfilled desires,” Obayuwana wrote.
Moreover, optimists are often more resilient than pessimists.
“If you haven’t achieved a goal after a few tries, you try again and again. And if you determine that a goal is truly impossible to achieve, you adjust it to keep hope alive,” Obayuwana wrote.
Some people are predisposed to optimism from birth. Research has shown that optimism is rooted in our genes and that some individuals are hardwired to be more hopeful and positive.
But having a glass-half-full view of life is also a skill that can be learned. Challenging negative self-talk and replacing pessimistic thoughts with positive ones can help a person become more optimistic.
“You can learn to be more optimistic by recognizing that good things happen and that anyone (including yourself) can make them happen,” Obayuwana wrote.
2. ‘I have something to offer other people’
This phrase represents high self-esteem and strong belief in yourself, says Obayuwana.
If you feel that your life has meaning, or that you can make a meaningful contribution to society or the people around you, it means that you are an important member of the community in which you live.
“You are important and you belong,” Obayuwana wrote.
If this statement doesn’t resonate with you, maybe it’s time to discover your true calling or passion.
“The best way to build this faith is to discover your true calling or passion — something you love to do and are really good at,” Obayuwana wrote.
Your “true calling” can be anything. Maybe you’re unhappy at work and want to explore other careers. Or maybe you want to do something more meaningful with your free time, like volunteering at an animal shelter or a charity you believe in.
Filling your time with experiences that make you feel like a valuable member of the community is the key to a happy life.
3. ‘I have someone I can count on’
Life is full of ups and downs. It is important to know that you have people who support you in difficult times.
“All humans have an innate desire for human contact,” Obayuwana wrote.
Having someone you can count on, especially in stressful emergencies, reduces your natural need for familiar company, he says.
Research has shown that good relationships are the most consistent predictor of a happy life. Humans are a social species, we need to connect with others to feel a sense of safety, security and belonging.
If you don’t have strong relationships in your life, you can expand your social circle by doing things that make others happy, Obayuwana says.
“Send someone a text because you’re thinking of them, give your neighbor a lift, compliment a friend, or let the other driver go first,” he wrote.
These small acts of kindness can strengthen budding relationships and help build a strong support system.
4. ‘When I need answers, I usually find them’
Humans are born with a natural curiosity, or a “hunger” for new information and answers to our questions.
“When you believe that answers to your questions are within reach, hunger is reduced and controlled. Just understanding ‘Why?’ can lift heavy burdens,” Obayuwana wrote.
Knowledge is a source of hope, he says. It strengthens self-respect, self-confidence and courage.
According to Obayuwana, feeling like you can rely on your knowledge and ability to find answers to get through difficult or confusing times can reduce fear and anxiety.
As the old saying goes, knowledge is power.
5. ‘When I think of what I have, I believe I am happier than many’
Practicing gratitude is the key to a happy life. This phrase acknowledges how fortunate you are to have your economic resources, such as money, food, shelter and the financial and material comforts they provide, says Obayuwana.
He believes that when you appreciate what you have, the value of what you have immediately increases.
You’ve probably heard the expression, “comparison is the thief of joy.” When we’re constantly wishing we had what others have, we don’t realize how rich our own lives are.
If you find it difficult to appreciate what you have, you can do small things every day to cultivate a sense of gratitude, Obayuwana says.
It can be as simple as being a good steward of your possessions. Making your bed, tidying your desk and conserving water and electricity can serve as daily reminders of all the things you deserve to be happy about, he says.
You can also practice gratitude through mindfulness. Taking a few minutes each day to count your blessings can make a big difference.
6. ‘Trust in something bigger than myself is comforting’
Practicing spirituality can reduce stress and anxiety, provide a sense of purpose and perspective, and make people more resilient in the face of life’s challenges.
Spirituality can refer to a belief in God or some other source of divine guidance, protection or supervision, but it doesn’t have to, Obayuwana says. In fact, spirituality doesn’t have to refer to organized religion at all.
Your core values, moral principles, ethical beliefs, and virtuous practices are all part of spirituality.
“Ultimately, spirituality is about the urge to respond to the material needs of others, the motivation to do things even when they are not directly for your benefit, and the hope and fulfillment you get from doing so,” he wrote.