Malaysians are generally unhappy lot: How to be happy?

Looking at the political situation in our country, the traffic congestions every day, economic slowdown, high inflation, no increment and bonuses, stress in exams, ruined marriages, etc, there's no doubt Malaysians are turning into unhappy lot.

If you expect people to change in order to make you happy, then you have to be patient because chances are people doesn't like to make changes to accommodate you. However, if changes comes from within you, things will be a lot easier and you'll be able to sustain happiness on a longer term.

If showing off anger and being negative are not what you want to resolve your unhappiness, then read on. This post is only for those people who doesn't do BJEs (blame, justify, excuses).

So how to be happy? (Based on the same topic in Wikihow)

1. See the world for what it really is. Many of us tend to forget how fortunate we are. By the way, fortunate is not equal to fortune. Wake up because we can't get everything we want all the time. Learn to be thankful.

2. Be yourself. Get real because you can't satisfy everyone. So what if people criticize you for different opinion? People never care about what you have gone through. Practice self-acceptance and you'll be a lot happier.

3. Build strong relationship with family. Many of us leave our hometown to build our lives and career in another city. Hence we leave our parents and family behind. Call your parents or go back to your hometown more often. It's hard to survive in the city these days due to the high cost of living. It's alright to share with them your situation /struggle and seek opinion.

4. Get a job you love. I'm sure you want to be productive on your job as well has looking forward to go to work every morning (in a happy mood) and still be able to have time for your family, friends and leisure. Consider to change job or even a career move if you start hating your job. There are many options in life.

5. Lighten up. Don't take yourself too seriously. Don't let stress controls you.

6. Change your thought process. If you can't laugh, at least smile. Use a little bit of imagination. We are able to control our state of mind and change the negative mindset to positive. Don't bury yourself with negativity.

7. Learn to be a giver. The problem is many of us only think about ourselves. We give too many excuses. If money is an issue, you can always contribute in kinds or time and energy.

8. Choose the right companion and friends. It's kind of important that you choose the right people to spend time with. Choosing positive and encouraging friends and getting involved in activities that reflect who you are will make you happy. Ditch those who doesn't.

9. Wish the best for others and mean it. Instead of spending most of our time finding faults in people, jealous with our colleagues and hate people who has different political view with us, spend those precious time to celebrate the good fortune of your colleagues, friends and family instead.

10. Be healthy. Keep your body and mind healthy with good diet and activities. Give yourself a good sleep every night. Be spiritually healthy helps too.

Personally I'm happy although I don't have much. If you are unhappy, you can get more tips at Wikihow.

The real superhumans

Last night, I spent 2 hours in front of the television watching Discovery Channel's amazing stories about real people with extraordinary super powers.

If you like to watch the show Heroes, this documentary might attracts you. Imagine, if you have always struggle in Mathematics and suddenly wakes up one day discovering that you have this extraordinary super power to solve complex mathematical formulas inside your head. That is exactly happening to Rudiger Gamm - The Human Calculator.

Wim Hof - The Iceman, another superhuman, discovered that he has the ability to control his body temperature. This man successfully completing a half-marathon run in his bare feet and wearing on shorts at the Arctic Circle in Finland.

In another case, Esref Armagan - The Blind Painter, is a gifted visual artist who can paint and draw in three dimensions. He drawing has been compared to Renaissance architect Filippo Brunelleschi who is the first artist to master the three point perspective. For your information, Esref has been blind since birth.

I find Elisabeth Sulser - The Synaesthete has the most impressive superpower which I can't imagine it myself. She is able to combine all the senses so that she can taste music! Imagine, F sharp is violet colour, a minor sixth is creamy and a perfect fourth tastes like mown grass.

The documentary also feature some of the geneticists, biologists and futurist which talked about very controversial topics including stem cell biology and genetic engineering. Pay attention to Bruce Lahn, a geneticist on his idea of an 'organ farm', which to me sounds a bit scary.