Happiness is considered very important in life. Why is it difficult to define? What factors are important in achieving happiness?

It is no doubt true that the majority of people would like to be happy in their lives. While the personal nature of

happiness

makes it difficult to describe, there do seem to be some common needs that we all share with regard to experiencing or achieving

happiness

.

Happiness

is difficult to define because it means something different to each individual

person

. Nobody can fully understand or experience another

person

’s feelings, and we all have our own particular passions from which we take pleasure. Some people,

for example

, derive a sense of satisfaction from earning money or achieving success, whereas for others, health and family are much more important. At the same time, a range of other feelings, from excitement to peacefulness, may be associated with the idea of

happiness

, and the same

person

may

therefore

feel happy in a variety of different ways.

Although

it seems almost impossible to give a precise definition of

happiness

, most people would agree that there are some basic preconditions to achieving it.

Firstly

, it is hard for a

person

to be happy if he or she does not have a safe place to live and enough food to eat. Our basic survival needs must surely be met before we can lead a pleasant life.

Secondly

, the greatest joy in life is usually found in shared experiences with family and friends, and it is rare to find a

person

who is content to live in complete isolation. Other key factors could be individual freedom and a sense of purpose in life. In conclusion,

happiness

is difficult to define because it is particular to each individual, but I believe that our basic needs for shelter, food and company need to be fulfilled before we can experience it.