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If there’s one hard truth we learn as adults, it’s that our society doesn’t put a premium on happiness.
Instead, we place value on success, monetary wealth, productivity, and appearances. But happiness? It’s never been considered much of a priority.
We’re asked to trust that happiness will come once we achieve everything else in life — career, money, power — but we never make happiness the goal, only a byproduct.
But it’s time we change that. So, to provide you with a little inspiration, we’ve gathered a few quotes from some of our favorite famous women. Some of it is advice, and some of it is lived experiences. Hopefully, at least one quote will resonate with you as you refocus your journey to happiness.
But First, a Note:
Science has found that smiling — real or fake — can have an enormous effect on our happiness. Studies have found that smiles release hormones like dopamine and serotonin, which can trigger a feeling of happiness, even if you weren’t in a great mood before. So, if you’re feeling self-conscious about your smile, consider investing in clear aligners, which can give you the confidence to smile without abandon.
1. Sandra Bullock
“I think most of us are raised with preconceived notions of the choices we’re supposed to make. We waste so much time making decisions based on someone else’s idea of our happiness – what will make you a good citizen or a good wife or daughter or actress? Nobody says, ‘Just be happy, go be a cobbler or go live with goats.”
2. Lupita Nyong’o
“I discovered that joy is not the negation of pain, but rather acknowledging the presence of pain and feeling happiness in spite of it.”
3. Cate Blanchett
“I could think about the implications of not having had three children; or, ‘If I had done that amazing film I wouldn’t have had that particular amazing child.’ But really, life is all down to chance and mistakes and screw-ups. Happiness is fleeting. I think that’s the main lesson I have learned.”
— to Vogue UK
4. Taylor Swift
“The realization that maybe the only path to healing is to wish happiness on the one who took it away from you.”
— in her notes on her album, evermore
5. Iris Apfel
“I had to be my own person and live my own life if I wanted to be happy, and I just did it.”
6. Jennifer Lawrence
“I think we’re all born with certain traits and qualities and it’s important to just work with it and be happy. Every time a thought may cross my mind about what I’d like to maybe change about myself, I then think, “But would I really? Do I really not want to have a glass of wine at dinner? Would I really not want to eat carbs past 4 p.m.? Would I really want to put in the work to look like that?” No. You can be a size zero, that’s cool. I’m going to stay at a size four and keep eating. So, I’m happy.”
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