There is one simple and offensive thing that we often forget about when we start talking about happiness.
And we like to talk about happiness, don't we?
"He makes me happy"
"You made me miserable"
"Children are my happiness..."
That's it.
These are catch phrases.
We must give someone power over ourselves so that this someone makes us unhappy or happy. A simple life hack: you can not give.
Imagine that happiness is the norm. Base salary. The most important thing to learn is to be happy by default. The rest, what makes us even happier - children, work, husband, wife, cats, etc. - these are bonuses. So. The salary should be such that you can live without bonuses. Then the additional bonuses become more pleasant, by the way.
Then children, husbands, hobbies, animals and travel are perceived as a luxury. Only then we truly appreciate them.