Happiness understood in hedonistic terms, what most people nowadays search, is futile, because a single inconvenience will make us unhappy.
However, optimising for virtue, as the stoics understood it, can make feel that we are doing what must be done and this brings peace, despite of any inconvenience.
Living and humble life, setting realistic goals (but not lazy ones, of course), caring for parents, spouse and children, and thinking in terms of virtue can help a lot.
I believe GP is talking about virtue ethics even if it is worded a bit clumsily. Two proponents of virtue ethics are the Stoics and Aristotle. A brief introduction:
"Virtue ethics is currently one of three major approaches in normative ethics. It may, initially, be identified as the one that emphasizes the virtues, or moral character, in contrast to the approach that emphasizes duties or rules (deontology) or that emphasizes the consequences of actions (consequentialism). Suppose it is obvious that someone in need should be helped. A utilitarian will point to the fact that the consequences of doing so will maximize well-being, a deontologist to the fact that, in doing so the agent will be acting in accordance with a moral rule such as “Do unto others as you would be done by” and a virtue ethicist to the fact that helping the person would be charitable or benevolent."
Happiness understood in hedonistic terms, what most people nowadays search, is futile, because a single inconvenience will make us unhappy.
However, optimising for virtue, as the stoics understood it, can make feel that we are doing what must be done and this brings peace, despite of any inconvenience.
Living and humble life, setting realistic goals (but not lazy ones, of course), caring for parents, spouse and children, and thinking in terms of virtue can help a lot.