A to Z Quick Chat 91 | Do you believe that happiness is a choice, or is it influenced more by external factors?

In this episode of The A to Z English Podcast, Jack is joined by May, Layla, and Hendrick as they discuss the following question:Do you believe that happiness is a choice, or is it influenced more by external factors?00:00:01JackWelcome to the A-Z English podcast, where Jack and Social take you on a journey from learning the basics to mastering the nuances of the English language. Our podcast is designed for non-native speakers who are looking to improve their English skills in a fun and interactive way. Each episode covers a wide range of topics.00:00:23JackFrom grammar and vocabulary to slang and culture to help you navigate the English speaking world with ease.00:00:34JackWelcome to the A-Z English podcast. My name is Jack and I'm one of the hosts of the podcast and today I am without social but do not worry, I am with May from Malaysia, Hendrick from Indonesia and Leila from Saudi Arabia. So we 3 for the price of 1.00:00:54JackCan't complain with that, so steal.00:00:57JackUM so.00:00:59JackWhat we're going to do today is a quick chat episode and I'm going to read a question to you and then I want you guys to just, you know, think about it and tell me what, what your opinions are. There's no right or wrong answer to these. These are just opinion questions. But the question is.00:01:19JackDo you believe that happiness is a choice, or is it influenced?00:01:26JackBy external factors and I'll read it one more time. Do you believe happiness is a choice that we make? Or is happiness influenced by?00:01:41JackExternal factors, things that happen to us.00:01:44JackIn our daily lives.00:01:48LaylaIt's close.00:01:52MayCostume make a decision for me.00:01:57LaylaI am.00:01:58MayBut I most probably I will go for.00:02:04MayExternal factor as well.00:02:07JackOK.00:02:12MayIt is true that we can choose to be happy. However, our external, the external factor most of the time affect as well.00:02:26MayFor example, if the environment we are surrounded with full of, like crisis, anger, everybody's fighting so.00:02:37MayI mean, it is hard for us to feel happy. How are we going to laugh at our time? Because our environment is so stressful.00:02:46MaySo we can't be pushing away all these things and laugh on our own.00:02:52MaySo I think that is hard.00:02:54MayTo happen it is, I mean it.00:02:56MayIs unlikely to happen.00:02:59MaySo on, but on the other hand, if we are in a very healthy environment, healthy surrounding.00:03:08MaySo certainly we will easily feel happy.00:03:15MayWithout any reasons, without finding the a reason.00:03:19MayTo be happy.00:03:22MayAnd the environment.00:03:24MayFor me, the the environment we are at.00:03:30MayIf will give us effect as well.00:03:34JackOK, so for you may you're kind of trying to figure out like is it the chicken what came first, the chicken or the egg, right? It's like does happiness come first and you choose it and it doesn't matter what the external factors are or do the external factors make you happy?00:03:55JackAnd so your happiness is is dependent on the external factors like what the people around you, some good luck, happy things happen, you know, good things happen to you.00:04:09JackIt sounds like you're you're more on the second the second one.00:04:14MayYes, I I want to the second option and we for sure we can decide where they want to be happy and and so on.00:04:23MayBut then we.00:04:26MayWhen we.00:04:28MayI mean, when you were a child, what can we do? What could we do unless we are? We are an adult and we move out from the the unhealthy place. So then we can decide.00:04:47MaySo when people always say happiness is our choice, if we decide we want to be happy, we.00:04:52MayCan be happy.00:04:53MayIt is true part. It is partly true.00:04:56MayBut then it is also depends on.00:04:59MayWhere we are.00:05:00JackOK. OK, good. Alright. So you're you're kind of, yeah, you kind of go. You're kind of you're kind of saying it's it it the both things are possible you could choose to be happy but.00:05:13JackIt's harder when bad things are happening to you and you're like I'm choosing to be happy and then something bad happens and you're like I'm choosing to be happy and another bad thing happens. It's very difficult, right?00:05:26MayYes, you are right Jeff.00:05:28JackYeah. OK. OK. Layla, what do you?00:05:31JackThink can you just choose to be?00:05:33JackHappy. Just wake.00:05:34JackUp and you go. I am happy today.00:05:38LaylaNo, I think I couldn't just have an exam. Maybe a literally. It depends on your environment. Sometimes you try to make happiness, you try to be happy all the time, but unfortunately you are. You are surrounded by negative.00:05:59LaylaPeople are.00:06:00LaylaSome very serious issue that really affect on you and in your feeling. So when you try to be happy, you couldn't. It's just like a challenge for you. So I think I can say between making happens and it depends on.00:06:20LaylaThe situation.00:06:23LaylaOr maybe the environment surrounded you?00:06:27JackOK. So you're you're going with #2 external factors is more?00:06:27LaylaThat's my thought thought about.00:06:33JackInfluences your your how happy you are in in a day.00:06:39JackOK, alright.00:06:41JackAnd Henry, OK, OK.00:06:41LaylaYeah, maybe.00:06:43LaylaYou can say that.00:06:44JackYeah. Yeah. Hendrick. What about you? Can you just turn the happiness on like a switch? You're just going to flip it on?00:06:51JackIn the morning, just.00:06:52JackHappiness switch.00:06:55HendrickYeah. For me, I think happiness.00:06:58HendrickIs a choice. I mean, this is your choice because.00:07:00HendrickBecause, I mean, like, yeah, when even when you are in the difficult situation, I mean like you can still trying to be happy, you just need you know like find one reason why you you have to be happy like one reason you have to be grateful and then be happy even even when you are.00:07:20HendrickLiving in the like in the bad information with bad people, I mean, like you can make the you can make the.00:07:32HendrickI mean like make the you know, like make it like the building and then, yeah, batteries. I mean, like, make the batteries and then yeah, it's like you still can choose to be happy even even when you are in the difficult situation or in the best situation.00:07:48JackOK.00:07:48JackOK, I like that. Alright, so you're you're like an eternal optimist. You're like, I can. There's good in every situation. We can find the good in it. Hold on to it. OK.00:07:49HendrickSo it is a choice.00:07:57HendrickYeah, exactly. Just find one reason. You just you just need to find one reason why you. Why you have to be happy. That's yeah. Every single day.00:08:00JackAlright, alright, alright.00:08:09JackSo I wish I could be like Hendrick, alright? I I wanna. I wanna. I wanna agree with you. But I'm I'm, you know, for me like happiness is. It's trickier for me. I my it's.00:08:21JackMore of mood related.00:08:23JackSometimes I just wake up and I'm in such a good mood. I'm.00:08:26JackJust happy.00:08:27JackAnd I don't know what it is.00:08:29JackLike maybe I.00:08:32JackIt's maybe it's chemical. It's just like the chemicals in my brain are all mixed together in such a good way. And I just like everything is positive. I feel good and I'm just happy.00:08:45JackAnd I can't really control it.00:08:46MayProbably you dream of something nice. Just the night. Probably probably in that on, on that night we dream about something.00:08:56JackYeah, maybe I dreamt about something. Nice. Yeah, that's that's.00:08:59LaylaYeah, really. So effect on me.00:09:03MayAnd your mood.00:09:04MayOn the next thing.00:09:04LaylaI thought.00:09:06JackI had a good dream and. Yeah, yeah, I I woke up and and I feel like I'm.00:09:11JackIn a good mood?00:09:13JackYeah, it just happens to me sometimes, but sometimes I I I wake up in a foul mood, you know, I'm just really.00:09:21JackI'm just really like, uh, you know, kind of depressed or or just down or whatever. I'm good at hiding it, you know, I mean, I don't think anyone ever that meets me ever thinks that I'm like a Moody, you know, like a roller coaster. I'm pretty stable.00:09:36HendrickYes you are.00:09:38JackYeah, like I.00:09:39JackI look like I'm pretty happy all the time. I'm a pretty happy person, generally speaking, but sometimes I'm just like extra happy and I and that's just mood related and I never know when it's gonna happen. It just hits like a lightning bolt and I wake up and I'm like I'm just so happy today. I just. I'm so happy to be here. I can't wait to teach this.00:09:59JackAnd sometimes I'm just really like, I'm not feeling it. And in those moments, I think Hendrick is right. You know, you have to.00:10:08JackFind something positive.00:10:11MayYeah, yeah.00:10:11JackWhat's I've I've got my health, I've got my, I've got this or that going for me and just hold on to that positive thing and try to carry that with you through the day and and not let the external. I mean, there's always going to be annoying things that happen to us every day.00:10:30HendrickExactly, yeah.00:10:30JackRight, traffic jams and.00:10:33JackFriends are gonna be angry with us, or we'll we'll argue with our spouse or something. And you know things are gonna happen. But if you can hold on to that one positive thing and like Hendrick says, I think you'd be much, much.00:10:48JackHappier, but it's hard to do, easy to talk about, difficult to do in practice, yeah.00:10:52HendrickYeah, exactly. Yeah. Because.00:10:56HendrickYeah, because, you know, like nowadays, you know, like I'm a.00:10:59HendrickStudent right now I have.00:11:00HendrickA lot of assignments, which is it makes me, like, feel overwhelmed. But you know, like I was trying to, you know, find one reason for example like ohh this is maybe, you know like one of the way for me to maybe one day to study a group.00:11:16HendrickLike it is like a training for me. And so I was thinking something positive and it makes me a bit better than, you know, like being.00:11:25JackThere you go. There you go. This is all just a step. One step towards something amazing happening for you. Yeah. Yeah. There you go. All right, everybody, let us know what you think. Can you is happiness like a switch that you can turn on?00:11:31HendrickYeah, that's it.00:11:42JackIs it something you can? Can you just hold on to it? If you can think of 1 positive thing in your life? Or is it? Are you kind of a victim of like circumstances? Like if everything's falling apart around you, does that just affect your mood so that you just can't be happy?00:12:03JackLet us know what you think by sending us your messages on our website, leaving a comment at A-Z englishpodcast.com very easy A-Z englishpodcast.com or send us an e-mail A-Z [email protected] that's A-Z [email protected]:12:23JackOr join our WhatsApp group and you can make lots of comments and get into a debate about this issue with our wonderful students in our WhatsApp group. So lots of choices for you all and we will see you, or at least you will hear us next time. 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