Earlier this month, Gallup-Healthways ranked all 50 states from happiest places to live to least happy. Hawaii topped their list, while Alabama came in 45th—only beating out Ohio, Delaware, Nevada, Louisiana and Michigan. Personally, I don't put a lot of stock in the rankings, mostly because the researchers only polled 352-thousand people—roughly 1/1000 of the total US populatio—but I'm also bothered by the fact that it was the researchers who decided what should make you happy. They picked six things they felt contribute most to a person's happiness. While some of them are certainly important, like having a good job and good health, other important factors were left out—like personality traits and hobbies. My point is this: only you can decide how happy you are, not some researcher with his own preconceived ideas about what should make you happy. And if there is something in your life that's making you unhappy, the only person who can do anything about it is you. I'm Vanessa Oubre and that's my take. What's yours?
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