On December 6, Jonathan Clements' column in the Wall Street Journal bore this intriguing headline: "The Pursuit of Happiness: Six Experts Tell What They've Done to Achieve It." Here's the lead.

"Yes, money can buy happiness. But you have to spend it with care. Take your dad to the Super Bowl. Buy a home near the office. Get married. Go out to dinner with the family. Take a memorable vacation, and be sure to buy souvenirs. Where does this advice come from? I talked to half-a-dozen academics who specialize in 'happiness research' -- and asked what changes they had made in their own lives."

It makes interesting reading.  And, it got me thinking.  After 60 plus years on the planet, what do I think makes for happiness?  Here's my best thinking.

It helps to be an optimist.  I know that sounds silly, but I believe it's true.  I've spent seen too many people in my life who seem determined to be sad, not matter what.  They can find a cloud inside the most silver of silver linings.

The happiest people I've known have been optimists.  Me too.  The glasses in my world are almost all half or more full. 

But if you're not an optimist, try learning how.  There's a book about it.  It's called (you guessed it) Learned Optimism and written by Martin Seligman, the dean of the positive psychologists.

The happiest people I know laugh a lot.  My dad was my role model there.  When I spoke at his memorial service I asked the assembled in the church to raise their hand if they'd ever heard my father laugh.  Everyone raised their hand.  Some raised both hands.

My dad was a role model in another thing.  He didn't just embrace life.  He picked it up and swung it around.  The happiest people I know enjoy the moments.  They find the joy and celebrate it.

The happiest people I know have lots of close relationships.  Some have family.  Some have friends.  Most have both.  Your family and friends support you when times are hard.  They cushion the blows of life.

The happiest people I know believe in something. For a lot of us, there's religious faith.  For many of us there are clear values, like doing excellent work, helping others, and being loyal.

The happiest people I know have some miles on them.  It seems to me that it's pretty hard to be really happy in your twenties and thirties. That's when the pressures of career and family can be awesome.  If you're in the midst of building a career and raising a family, take heart.  Things will get better.

The happiest people I know love their work.  Most of us spend a lot of time doing the things that earn a living and put back a nest egg.  It only makes sense to make those hours as rewarding as possible.

And what about money?  I defer there to the great American philosopher Sophie Tucker who said, "I've been rich and I've been poor and believe me, honey, rich is best."

If you're at a place in life where you've got to worry every day about money, it's hard to be happy.  But once you get to where you have enough money, money itself doesn't help so much any more.  In other words, after enough more money doesn't make you happier.

Unless …

Unless you use it in ways that help with all the other things that make for happiness.  Use the money to increase the quality of your life. Spend it on people you love and activities you relish.

Here are some books on happiness that you may want to read.

Happiness: A History by Darrin McMahon
Happiness: Lessons from a New Science by Richard Layard

Wally Bock has helped people learn to be great bosses for more than a quarter century. His latest book, Performance Talk: The One-on-One Part of Leadership, makes learning key leadership principles almost effortless by teaching through a story and providing lists of resources for further growth.