I spend a lot of time thinking about happiness: What makes me happy? How do I optimise for happiness? Inspired by Matt Haig’s list in his book Reasons to Stay Alive, I made my own list.

  1. The sun.
  2. Childhood memory of me sitting under the sun in a comfy chair, with a book in my hand, and a radio playing nearby. Good old Vividh Bharati.
  3. Hoppipolla by Sigur Ros. This song (and its video) really makes me happy.
  4. Memories from that summer in Kota when I used to sip tea in the theka nearby, listening to Atif Aslam songs on my phone, thinking about the future, and watching all the people rushing pass me. Every second was important in the Kota IIT grind.
  5. Sizzlers. I can eat sizzlers every day.
  6. Pina Colada.
  7. My Kindles. I have two: one I use to read fiction and fast paced non fiction. My wife calls it the fun Kindle. Another one for reading serious books.
  8. Podcasts. I spend most of my free time listening to them.
  9. Massages.
  10. Stretching my neck in the morning.
  11. Sitting in my comfy chair in the hall, reading a book.
  12. A good workout.
  13. A good session of Yoga with Adrienne.
  14. Cashew nuts. I love cashew nuts in everything.
  15. Kaju katli.
  16. Magnolia’s banana pudding.
  17. Late night therapy session with close friends where we actually discuss real things.
  18. A funny shitpost landing well on Twitter. There was a point when I wanted to be a part time stand up comic. Or become a comic strip writer. Both failed. So I started writing jokes on Facebook. Once I deleted my Facebook, I started writing silly little jokes on Twitter.
  19. Sitting in the balcony with my wife late night. With cool Bangalore breeze. Reading a book.
  20. When a I ship a complex project at work.
  21. When I manage to help someone with something.
  22. Fifa session with friends. I have a love hate relationship with Fifa.
  23. Red Dead Redemption 2.
  24. Road trips.
  25. Full English breakfast.
  26. Hawaian pizza.
  27. Plants.
  28. Scented candles.
  29. Financial cushion. The ability to buy things without overthinking (like I used to when I had no money).
  30. Football nights.
  31. Liverpool FC.
  32. Poker nights.
  33. Meditations.
  34. Career successes (salary hikes/promotions). Isolated spikes that vanish after 3 days.
  35. Goa.
  36. Managing to avoid my relatives.
  37. Compliments from coworkers.
  38. Harry Potter. I even have a Harry Potter tattoo.
  39. Sleeping throughout the day during cold winters.
  40. Memories from that winter when I had come home during college break and spent my entire break binge watching South Park in bed.
  41. Twitter DMs from people showing appreciation for something I wrote.

No NSFW content in this list.