There is nothing wrong with being unhappy. Unhappiness is a natural emotion we all have when we are having terrible days. There are moments when I am confident things are going perfectly, but then unforeseen situations arise, altering my plans. I get angry and unhappy. I complain. I think of the worst and fall into a depression. However, those emotions are temporary. Once I take the time to vent, I no longer dwell on failures. I pick myself up and continue moving forward. Unfortunately, we don't always move on so easily.

Sometimes, a person's unhappiness leads to a deep depression and, eventually, the person seeks professional guidance, unable to recover alone. However, there are people who choose to do nothing to turn their unhappiness into happiness. They are content living their lives in jealousy and negativity. They blame the world for their misfortunes instead of trying to make changes.

As years pass, I continue to meet many people who choose to live unhappily. Here are six undesirable traits that keep you from living a happy life:

Jealous of others

You find it difficult to celebrate someone else's good fortune. You compare yourself to other people. For example, if someone receives a raise or a job promotion, you make negative comments to others. You cannot understand how you didn't receive an increase and the other person did.

Criticizing people

You feel comfortable criticizing how someone looks, what he says, how he does things. You strive to belittle others so that, in return, you can feel better about yourself.

Negative thinking

You tend to think only of the negative. If a friend or family member urges you to see the positive things out there, you quickly turn those comments down. Because bad things have happened to you, you can't fathom the idea of positivity. You wake up each day expecting the worst.

Being disrespectful for no reason

Occasionally, we may come off as rude to others when we are overwhelmed. That's understandable. However, it's different when you are disrespectful "out of the blue." You approach others with nastiness and annoyance even when they've done nothing wrong.

Love to gossip

People hide behind gossip. Perhaps you are dealing with challenges that you'd rather cover up by focusing on other people's downfalls. For example, you gossip about a friend's parenting skills or marriage. You enjoy stirring up gossip as a way to make yourself feel better.

Constantly complaining

Although we all have the right to complain about the hardships in our lives, there is a limit. It's not healthy for the mind or for the soul to live in a constant state of turmoil. Sadly, if you are constantly complaining, you can't expect that state to change.

Life has its ups and downs. It throws us curves at the most unexpected times. But it is up to us to make the best of every negative situation. In the meantime, we should embrace the good granted to us.