Do you need a little more happiness in your life? Here are 18 quotes meant to add a little extra happy to your day. Simple inspiration to get you to smile today.

Why is happiness so sought after? Ok, I know silly question. Happy feels good, and we all want to hold onto good feelings.

Now the confusion is we think happiness is found at the end of a pot of gold. We believe that we will be happy when we get the next thing, the next accomplishment, the next income level. We continually put happiness into the future...and this is the biggest mistake we can make. Happiness is a feeling, and you can only feel in the present moment. The moment can be a few seconds or a few hours, but it will come and go.

The simplest things in life can bring us the most pleasure and yet, we resist the simple pleasures. We are conditioned to believe that happiness is associated to income level and accomplishments.

Psychologists from Purdue University and the University of Virginia analyzed World Gallup Poll data from 1.7 million people in 164 countries, and cross referenced their earnings and life satisfaction. Although the cost and standard of living varies across these countries, researchers came up with a bold conclusion: The ideal income for individuals is $95,000 a year for life satisfaction and $60,000 to $75,000 a year for emotional well-being.

Now if you are earning in range of these incomes and still don't feel happy, don't worry you are not alone.

We have become a society of more is better. No one wants to settle for enough. We are conditioned from a young age to strive for more. There is nothing wrong with being motivated and inspired to continue to grow. The problem occurs when we are pursuing happiness instead of enjoying happiness in the moments along the journey.

These 18 quotes are meant to give you a simple reason to be happy, if only for a moment. Enjoy!

1. “Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.” Thich Nhat Hanh

2. “The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.”  Oprah Winfrey

3. “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” Buddha

4. “Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” Marthe Troly-Curtin

5. “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” Confucius

6. "Smiling is the best way to face every problem, to crush every fear, and to hide every pain.” Will Smith

7. “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” Mahatma Gandhi

8. “The pleasure which we most rarely experience gives us the greatest delight.” Epictetus

9. “Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory.” Albert Schweitzer

10. “You may be damaged and broken and unhinged. But so are shooting stars and comets.” Nikita Gill

11. “The biggest adventure you can ever take is to live the life of your dreams.”  Oprah Winfrey

12. “Love comes more naturally to the human heart. Let’s be joyful in our struggle to make that truth manifest here on earth." Barack Obama

13. “Happiness is the best makeup” Drew Barrymore

14. “Think of all the beauty around you and be happy.” Anne Frank

15. “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, which is why we call it the present.” Bill Keane

16. “All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

17. “In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they're still beautiful.” Alice Walker

18. “You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us. And the world will live as one.”  John Lennon

What makes you happy? Share your favourite quote in the comment section below. If this blog resonates with you, please share it below on any of your social platforms.

Wishing you love, joy and peace,

Sandra Francisco