Positive emotions are found most commonly in people who are inspired or motivated. However, they can also be found in simply not doing anything of import at all, but simply going through their daily routine in a way they expect it to go. The former is common in younger people while the latter is common in older people. 

Feeling joy and contentment on a typical day involves most parts of the day going according to what a person likes to happen on that day. 

Sustained negative emotions come from a feeling of unfairness, failure (at anything, even failing to garner as many likes as you wanted on an Instagram post) and life in general falling short of expectations.

And a sense of satisfaction comes from comparing their current status to that of their peers, to their own expectations and the expectations others have for them. 

The goal of breaking down and understanding anything complex is to help us make smaller improvements on the smaller components that all add up. 

Four questions to ask yourself every night, before going to sleep: