It’s great to have such a cacophony of info; yet, it’s also enough to make anyone’s head spin.<\/p>\n
So, it was with relief that we stumbled upon an intriguingly simple approach to this enormous and thorny topic.<\/p>\n
The Hawaiian approach<\/strong><\/p>\n According to a new article in\u00a0Forbes<\/a>, the Hawaiian language is brimming with different words that capture happiness. And one of these is “niele” – or the art of being curious.<\/p>\n Read more: “Why I quit my city job to train as a ski instructor”<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n “The Hawaiians believe everyone has a purpose in life; that\u2019s a given,” explains writer (and avid traveller)\u00a0Jordi Lippe-McGraw<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n “So, it\u2019s important to be curious and explore different avenues to figure out what that is. This sense of curiosity makes the present moment more exciting as you\u2019re constantly on a journey of finding fulfillment.”<\/p>\n Openness to experience<\/strong><\/p>\n There’s nothing big or flashy about being curious, and yet it opens up so many doors. And therein lies its genius.<\/p>\n Read more: The life-altering benefits of hiking<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Time and again, we hear that new experiences<\/a> are the key to happiness. Trying something different – whether that’s travelling to a new country, or learning a fresh skill – facilitates flexible thinking<\/a>. It helps us to see the world in a different and more creative<\/a> way.<\/p>\n And this entire process begins with being curious.<\/p>\n New people, new horizons<\/strong><\/p>\n With curiosity also comes the opportunity to reach out to new people. It’s the driving force that compels us to reach out and tap into the stories of others.<\/p>\n Even little day-to-day encounters with people we hardly know gives a sense of\u00a0belonging to a larger community.<\/p>\n Read more: Revive your career with a short, sharp adventure<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Meeting strangers broadens our horizons<\/a>, challenging us to think from a different point of view. Sometimes, those people become friends – which, of course, is an even bigger win<\/a> in the happiness stakes.<\/p>\n Staying in the present<\/strong><\/p>\n When you’re curious about the things and the people around you, you’re more likely to stay in the now. And living in the moment<\/a> – rather than daydreaming or dwelling – really does make us happier.<\/p>\n Read more: Is it harder for men to make friends while travelling?<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n “Human beings have this unique ability to focus on things that aren’t happening right now,” says\u00a0Matthew Killingsworth, a doctoral student in psychology at\u00a0Harvard University, who contributed to a major study on mental wellbeing<\/a>. “It seems that human beings often use this ability in ways that are not productive and furthermore can be destructive to our happiness.”<\/p>\n Being curious guards against becoming too lost in your own head. You look out to the world, rather than inwards to yourself.<\/p>\n Ask and you will find out<\/strong><\/p>\n They say ignorance is bliss, but the opposite is actually true. Being curious means we ask more questions – and our thirst for knowledge is sated.<\/p>\n This, in turn, builds self-esteem and resilience.<\/p>\n Read more: 5 ways to make every day an adventure<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n “Learning can help us build confidence and a sense of self-efficacy,” says Vanessa King<\/a>, positive psychology expert at\u00a0Action for Happiness<\/a>. “As human beings, we have a natural desire to learn and progress. Psychologists call it mastery.”<\/p>\n So, there you have it. Four ways for happiness to flourish, from the simple act of being curious.<\/p>\n Go forth and let your inner nosiness loose…<\/p>\n Images: Shutterstock<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Our eternal quest for happiness has a tendency to get a bit complicated. There are…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9030],"tags":[107,778,674,464,433,768,443,662,362,434,586,947,735,460,740,677,543,438,765],"class_list":["post-12890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wellness","tag-adventure","tag-authentic","tag-confidence","tag-discover","tag-escape","tag-experience","tag-explore","tag-friendship","tag-group-adventure","tag-happiness","tag-happy","tag-hawaii","tag-meaning","tag-meeting-people","tag-mindfulness","tag-self-esteem","tag-solo-adventure","tag-travelling","tag-travelling-with-strangers"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12890"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12890\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flashpack.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Hawaii-Shutterstock-1-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"career](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/woman-solo-travel-rainbow-mountains-peru.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Dubrovnik](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Dubrovnik-Croatia-Group-Adventure-4.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"happiness\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/beach-hammock-2.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"new](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/conversation-rooftop-bar-city-munich-4.jpg\")
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