"Don't Worry, Be Happy," sings Bob Marley. But happiness appears to be a lost art. The stress of day to day living has made us worried and very unhappy. Our scarce resources don't seem sufficient to balance the demand.

Yet is worry itself only an illusion? A bad habit? A self-defeating way of thinking?

How happy are you with your life? Do you worry that life is passing you by? Do you ever find yourself daydreaming, wondering what life would be like if you followed your heart's desires? Do you know what makes you happy? Or do you feel it is too late, you are too old, tired or just too busy, to change and be happy?

Can you even imagine change is possible?

When you feel stuck in your routine, tired and frustrated it is easy to think your life will always be the same. To be happy, you need to take action. It can feel daunting to follow the path of your dreams. However, when you fail to be true to yourself, you run the risk of feeling bitter, sad and lonely.

Happiness is state of your mind. When your mind is free from all the negative emotions and you don't have to worry about anything you are happy. It's the one side on how to look on things.

Just imagine if you receive a check and a bill in your mailbox. You can put the bill away and be happy about the money you received in check or you can put check away and complain about high payments. The same situation but you can decide how to act. You can be happy or sad it all depends on you.

The power is there. Your mind is a creative force. Yet, it will take some time to rewrite the messages that you've given your subconscious. But you can do it - the power is there if you have the desire and intention. The only difficulty is deciding if you really want to make the effort!

Stop entering into the daily "moan and groan" sessions about the economy, the opposite sex or your home team! Walk away from that garbage. Start to expand your vision of the world. Practice being grateful and appreciative. It will change the way you think and the way you feel.

We all get angry, sad, and unhappy throughout our lives and we should always feel these emotions but it is not beneficial for us to dwell on these feelings or live by them as so many of us do. I myself have lived this way by focusing on my negative feelings from ill events that have happened in the past. It is very easy to get caught up in our unhappiness and make this the focus of our world. Quite frankly I believe our ego feeds on our negative thoughts and it takes a conscious effort to stay in a happy state of consciousness.

Instead of looking for happiness in external objects, learn to develop your capacity for being happy just by existing in this world.