What makes you happy? Why?

We regularly ask our interviewees what makes them happy because at the end of the day, what else really matters? We’ve highlighted some of the responses below.

Cindy Liang

Genuine, authentic connection makes me happy. I believe building meaningful relationships is the best way to grow and learn things about myself and also create community. I am an introvert on paper but I truly enjoy spending time with the people I care about the most. My favorite feeling is laughing so hard with friends that I have tears in my eyes and I can hardly speak. I love sharing a meal with someone or doing something active and getting to catch up on anything and everything. Happiness is knowing that I have people around me who I can depend on and enjoy life with. Read more>>

Douglas Wallace

you know what… for a minute I’ve been struggling with that question. My therapist asked me this and I couldn’t give him an answer so here’s my answer.. acknowledgment. I want people to know I’m here and I can create just like these other artists out here or even better, I wanna be acknowledged that I’m not just flying by the seat of my pants and success is falling in my lap I want to know that I earned the right to be here. Read more>>

Chanda Am

The Joy of seeing people happy knowing that I was able to help them. Read more>>

Madison Williams

Funny enough, this is an incredible question but it can be challenging to put into words (so I’m glad you asked). My daily self-actualization, my loved ones, and my career are what actually bring me joy. To put simply, all of these aspects of my life are interwoven in such a way that I value what I have over what I don’t. Read more>>

Alyssa Katalyna

Finding out what makes you happy is the hardest part of being an artist. You’re so overly saturated with other people’s ideas of how you should be, how your art should be, and how other people interpret that art. It can often feel like you’re drowning. The best thing anyone can do is figure out how their own feelings fit into their work, as if to say, “Hey, this type of art speaks to me. This is how I see myself and this is how I envision my best version of me”. It makes your work much more self-driven. Read more>>

Cindy Busby

Something I’ve realized throughout my life is that nothing can actually “make me happy”. If I rely on my external world to dictate my feelings then I’m bound to be disappointed, so I focus on myself instead and what I can control. Everyday I choose to prioritize consistent self love and self care practices like exercise, my dog, meditate, sleep, cook, write, laugh, and read. I maintain a lifestyle that allows me to find appreciation in the simple things. Creating connection and having deep and meaningful conversation with family and friends. At times, when I do find myself in states of “unhappiness” its typically because I’ve lost balance and routine in my life, which takes me out of alignment with what fulfills and inspires me. By creating a practice of daily gratitude, I’m able to be the best version of myself and stay “happy” no matter what life may throw my way and therefore my happiness is no longer altered by the unpredictability of life but rather thrives despite it. Read more>>

Hassan Zee

Ever since I was a little boy I had a dream. That dream was to be on the big screen on cinema. I saw my first film in an outdoor theatre when my dad’s orderly put me on the front handle of his bicycle and rode his bicycle near an outdoor cinema. I saw these people inside this huge screen, they looked like real people. I wanted to go live with them, talk to them, sing with them, dance with them. My dad was strict and we were not allowed to watch TV as we did not have one for long time so I had to sneak out into neighbor’s house to watch cinema on Sundays. Read more>>