Sometimes we get so caught on in our own problems that we often forget the smaller things in life. We invest in technological devices or even a luxury car but do those things really make us happy? And if so, for how long?

Academic studies have shown that material things do not create a consistent sense of happiness. If this is so, what will keep us happy? It is very easy to fall into the following routine, wake up, go to work, go home, relax, eat and go to sleep. Then wake up the next day and do the same thing. Research has shown that if you make more time for your family and friends you will create a good level of happiness. When we are in the presence of other people we like certain parts of our brain produce a stimulant that triggers happiness. Being with family and friends can make us more active and energetic. So try making your family and friends a priority.

Try to stop stressing out over the money. As Americans we are always concerned about making more money and keeping up with the Jones. We work that much harder in the hope of getting promoted or getting a pay raise. Most Americans when they achieve that goal admit they still want more, we are never satisfied. Experts call this obsession "hedonic adaptation" or the "hedonic treadmill."

What we should be doing is Keeping and cherishing what we already have. Research has shown that once we reach a comfortable standard of living we are only really happy when we receive more money or move to a bigger house or to a better neighborhood. As weird as this may sound some people are happy when they know that their neighbors or friends have less money than they do.

Here are some things that may help you reach a lasing happiness. Try not to commute to far, rush hour traffic does not make anyone happy. Moving into a better neighborhood might be nice but if you have to drive an hour to get to work maybe you should rethink the living situation. Is the commute to a nice area worth your leisure time? Probably not.

Eat right. I know you are probably hearing that a lot lately with all those diets or diet plans advertised on our TVs. Besides the physical aspect eating right makes your emotions better. Eating satisfies a very basic need and you should enjoy it. Along those lines some form of activity is also very good for us. We all know being active can be a challenge but research has shown that the more active one is, the more happiness they will experience.

Become a volunteer, it really doesn't matter what your passion is volunteering is a very rewarding activity. It makes you feel valuable and lets you see others doing good deeds. It allows you to see the world as a good place and that will help you feel better about yourself and others.

Make time to do things with your family and friends. Try doing the simple things like eating dinner at the table, turn off the TV and talk to each other.

We Americans like to have everything now we just can't wait, well life's not really like that so you will need to give these things some time to work. Emotional changes aren't that drastic at least when you're trying to move towards happiness. That shift is going to be gradual it could take months or even years to reach full and complete happiness. Just give it time!