This is something that I struggled with throughout most of high school but by college, I started figuring out what personally worked for me to become regularly happy. I'm sure these areas will change and get more complex as I get older, get married, and have kids because of changing priorities but I'm trying to find my base right now so I will at least always have something to work off of.
I know there have been disagreements with this theory in the past, but I have found
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs theory to fit in very well for me even though it isn't a perfect match. The theory states that the highest level is self-actualization and assumes that when one reaches that level, he or she will reach their greatest potential for happiness and other aspects of life.
I personally have found self-improvement on both the physical and cognitive level to be the main difference maker once I got my social needs met. I have been socially accepted, both sexual and non-sexual, and confident in high school before but the feeling never matched the euphoria I've had when I started to drastically improve myself. The mindset, I think, is what made it so much better.
Skipping the physical and security needs, what has worked for the people here and how have they changed as you guys have aged? Reading, sharing ideas, constantly reflecting on my life, and analyzing the world around me have worked best for me.
And yes, I do know that I will never be constantly happy, the up and downs of life are very important and I realize that.