Oprah Winfrey has an exciting and some may say enviable life as a talk show host-producer-philanthropist, but she says the secret to her happiness is that she is not envious of anyone.
"I don't know anyone happier. I don't know anyone who has a better life, or had a better life. I look at other people and I think, they look happy. But not as happy as me," Winfrey told Vogue in a recent interview.
During her rare time off from her busy life and career, she loves nothing more than well, doing "nothing" -- that’s what makes her truly happy.
"I can go weeks and never turn on a television. I've gone a summer not having it on. No, my guilty pleasure is, I do nothing."
This is an attitude and mindset you can adopt at any time in your life -- and it's what will lead to more fulfillment and gratitude. Of course, we don't all have Oprah's life, but also need to remember we're not walking in someone else's shoes, either.
Oprah went through a lot to get where she is today, and so did many of the people you envy. We all have our own hardships and boundaries to overcome and it's important to work on gaining perspective.
See how far you've gotten and celebrate your accomplishments. Don't focus on the fact other people have what you want. Instead, celebrate the success and happiness of others and use it as an inspiration to pursue your own goals and become the best version of yourself.
"I live in a very beautiful space that I created, and every time I leave home and I'm driving out the back with the pond and the ducks, and I'm looking at the grass and I see the house on the hill, I have this moment where I think about when Dorothy says in 'The Wizard of Oz', 'I learnt I didn't have to look further than my own back yard.' Every time I think of that.
Most people don't even know what makes them happy. But I can just sit on my porch and I'll start reading a book and then realize, Okay, I'm not reading any more. I can just take it all in. I can just be."
Mindfulness is important and so is comfortable silence. We don't always have to be busy and moving and active to be fulfilled, and being comfortable in our own skin and in our own thoughts is an important step into being better versions of ourselves, instead of just looking over our shoulders at what everyone else has going on.
