Joy vs. Happiness: Why The Difference Is So Important

“If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands!”  (clap,clap)…

I’m sure you know this song as many of us have freely sang and danced to this children’s tune at some point in our lives. With big bright eyes we jumped, clapped, and giggled because we were happy and we knew it. Well, maybe. I don’t know about you, but it has taken much more than a song for me to discover what it means to experience and live in true happiness.

Throughout my personal and professional life, I’ve engaged with countless other women to discover that we all want to “be happy and know it.” While the meaning of happiness differs for each of us, the unforgettable rush of feelings and emotions that come along with it is universal. However, in my journey of understanding what happiness looked like for everyday life, I discovered the existence of something deeper. I discovered joy, and it changed my life.

I used to see joy and happiness used interchangeably, but once I came to my own revelation of the two, I found them to be more like fraternal twins. Although they are related and come from the same family, they’re vastly different and realistically encompass distinct meanings, emotions, triggers, and psychological reactions for each of us.

First, let’s dig a little deeper to get a better understanding of the two…

Joy vs. Happiness

According to Dictionary.com joy and happiness are defined as follows:

Joy

1. the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation:
2. a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something or someone greatly valued or appreciated: Her prose style is a pure joy.
3. the expression or display of glad feeling; festive gaiety.
4. a state of happiness or felicity.

Happiness

1. Happiness is the quality or state of being happy
2. good fortune; pleasure; contentment; joy

Unlocking the Origins

Joy and happiness both consist of emotions, but their origins are tremendously different. Just think about it. Happiness is your outward expression of excitement and something must typically be “happening” to trigger such a response. However, joy is your inward peace, gratification, and “everyday is a spa day” zone. For example, your significant other may surprise you with a gorgeous bouquet of roses or you may get a call with the greatest news ever from your bestie. Instantly, your happiness will take over and you’ll mostly likely be smiling from ear-to-ear. But joy says, “With or without the flowers or the fantastic news, I’m still smiling big on the inside and the outside.”

Ultimately, happiness is encountered when experiencing external pleasures, and we obtain joy when living from a place of gratitude, emotional well-being, or spiritual abundance.

Why Happiness Is Temporary

So here’s the deal… As amazing as happiness is, it’s not here for the long haul. And if all you’re searching for in life is to “just be happy.” You may find yourself a bit disappointed. As I mentioned before, happiness is contingent upon events, people, and things that may not lend themselves to long-term satisfaction, leaving it temporary in nature. However, joy is caused by inner experiences and lasts for as long as you decide it will. With joy, it’s your world, we just live in it. No matter the ups or downs that life brings, you wear your continuous internal state of peace like a designer dress.

All Emotional About It

Joy takes up residency in your heart, while happiness just pays it a visit. Joy in an intentional attitude and decision. You can actually have joy during the most difficult times of life. How so? Because joy is a state of being and happiness is a feeling. Joy is capable of existing with a host of other emotions including anger, sadness, and frustration. However happiness cannot and is often considered to be the directed opposite of sadness.

You Can Choose Both

Truth bomb… It is ok and possible to have both! Joy may be the ultimate state to live in and out of but within that space comes undeniable moments of happiness that makes our lives incredible and unique.  And while those bursts of excitement may not last forever, you would’ve at least opened yourself up to embracing every beautiful moment that life brings to the fullest extent.

Life isn’t always about choosing one or the other. Here are a few practical ways you can obtain joy and happiness in your life.

1. Complain less and express gratitude more
2. Enjoy the simple, everyday pleasures of life
3. Spend more time doing the things you love (hobbies/passions)
4. Maintain your morals and values
5. Spend quality time with family and friends
6. Laugh often
7. Cultivate your spiritual connectedness
8. Think positive thoughts

Now that you know the difference, take some time to think about your own joy and happiness and the practical ways you can have a thriving life filled with both.

BE INSPIRED,