A typical day in my life:

6:30am: It is so cold and gloomy outside and I feel like sleeping for longer, but I have to wake up and go to the gym.

7:00am: I want to kick ass at my circuit training today and then spend an hour reading.

9:30am: I want to bike to work today and I want to get things A, B, C, D and E done by the end of the work day.

11:30am: I have to attend this meeting and I have to answer all those emails.

1:00pm: I have to eat a lot of protein at lunch, but I also want to have a cheesecake for dessert.

4:00pm: It is so sunny outside I want to go out and take a walk, but I have to complete this document first.

6:00pm: I have to go buy some groceries and I have to return those three calls that I missed during the day.

6:30pm: I want to write a blog post and I want to write a thousand words for my next book, but I have to go meet this acquaintance as well.

8:30pm: I want to watch this football match/TV show/read a book but I have to make dinner. Maybe I can order a pizza, but I want to eat healthy as well.

11:00pm: I have to sleep now if I am to wake up at 6:30 tomorrow, but I want to finish reading what I'm reading.

You can try writing down your typical day (or just today) in a similar manner.

I don't write it down this way, but what I do instead is plan my days. And my planning almost always includes only the things that I want to do and very rarely things that I have to do. And when I look back on the day to see what I got done and what I didn't, the things I didn't manage to get done is usually because I ended up using that time to do things that I have to do instead.

We all lie on a scale, one end of which is doing only the things that we want to do and the other end of which is doing only the things that we have to do.

The path to happiness is to move closer to the 'want to' end without breaking anything. Because when you break something, there is no happiness.

Start every day by listing down what you have to do that day and what you want to do that day. And see how that list evolves over time.

It is an interesting exercise that will help you learn more about yourself.