Happiness. Sometimes when life feels like it’s hitting you hard, you’ll find yourself asking, “What even is happiness?” As a sophomore college student, I find that it is easy to get caught up in so many important, yet unimportant things, that it’s easy to lose your happiness along the way.

You want to do well in school. You want to make money. You want a social life. You want to sleep. While I believe that there is always a way to balance everything you want to do, I do wonder at what cost it takes to have it all.

I’ve watched so many people get caught up in the stress school and life throws their way, and all I want to see people as is happy.

Your happiness is a very personal thing, and only you know what truly makes you happy. Does watching Netflix for an hour make you happy? Then do it. Does working out make you relaxed? Then go lift a few weights or take a walk.

It’s easy to place all your responsibilities before your happiness. After all, happiness doesn’t have deadlines to follow or a job to do. But…at the end of your lifetime, you won’t remember all the responsibilities you had or the deadlines you had to follow. You’ll remember laughing at a really funny event. You’ll remember the friends who had your back through it all. You’ll remember things that made you happy. Ask yourself, “When is the last time you did something for you and only you?”

I know. It’s easier said than done to put your responsibilities on the back burner and do something for you. However, I am a firm believer that you can set aside a couple hours a day to do something you want to do. Even if it’s just enjoying a coffee on a pretty day, it’s the little things in life sometimes.

I believe that everyone deserves to be happy. I know that some people really struggle with finding that happiness and that at times it’s hard to feel like happiness is ever really an option. But, try to dig deep. What is holding you back from being happy?