I’ve been thinking and it strikes me that, despite our differences and our unique characteristics, most of us want the same thing.
We want to be HAPPY.
Happiness is one of the most sought-after goals in life, yet for many, it remains very elusive. Often-times I hear things like “When I just have that nice house and new car, then I will be happy.” “When I lose 20 pounds, then I will be happy”, “When I’m earning this much… I’ll be happy”. But in reality, happiness is available to all of us, right now. A big house or a new car won’t actually make you happier; it’s the simple joys in life that bring true happiness.
Read on to learn how you can start living a happier life today.
Do What You Love
If your passion is writing, travelling, or teaching children how to dance, make time to do it. When you are doing what you love and loving what you do, you’re filled with joy. How much better does that sound than forcing yourself do something you don’t like?
Be Yourself
As Steve Jobs said,
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”
Accept who you are, just be yourself, and you’ll feel a world of difference.
Exercise
Exercise is not only good for the body, but also the mind. And yes, I admit, this is not my favourite thing in the world, but even going for a simple walk has been shown to increase serotonin levels and lift people’s mood for hours afterwards. Lately, I’ve started listening to audio books while I walk, and so far, I’m really enjoying it.
Helping Others
Sometimes after we’ve achieved our own personal goals, we still feel empty inside because we haven’t made a meaningful contribution to someone else’s life. When we volunteer or help others, it feels good to just be of service. So next time you’re feeling down, look at ways you can start to contribute to the lives of those around you and notice the difference it makes to your own emotional well-being.
Be Grateful
Feelings of sadness can arise when we think about everything we don’t have in our lives. By shifting our focus onto all the things we do have and being grateful for each one, we can immediately increase our levels of happiness.
When you think of all the things that you have to be grateful for, you will appreciate how lucky you really are. Without even realizing it, we take our basic necessities for granted — a roof over our head and plenty of food to eat. By appreciating the things that you already have, you’ll begin to feel happier in your life.
Smile More
Practice smiling more and see how it affects you internally, and those around you. You can always afford to give a smile. Smiling can make you happier — even if you have to force it, you’ll still feel better.
Spend Time with Your Loved Ones
There’s no replacement for spending quality time with your loved ones. We’re social beings after all. People love spending time with their friends and family for good conversation, bonding, and some laughs. Life’s too short to live it without wonderful friends & family.
Find Ways to Manage Stress
Don’t let stress rob you of your right to be happy. Practices such as meditation and journaling can help you to manage your stress better so as not to (negatively) impact your quality of life.
Celebrate your Success
People with low self-esteem or depression tend to focus on all the times they failed or felt like there weren’t good enough. Go back over your life and think about all the times you were good enough. When you were a good enough daughter, friend, colleague, student, employee, parent, aunt… Take the time to truly acknowledge and appreciate your success in those moments for higher self-esteem and enhanced emotional well-being.
Eliminate Negative Thinking
You already know that negative thinking will bring you down. But how do you stop it? First, become more aware of your thoughts and try replacing any negative thoughts with more positive ones. And spend less time with negative people.
Forgive and Forget
Holding a grudge will harm you more than the person you’re holding it against. Ask yourself, “What would it take for me to let go of the past?” and notice how you feel when you let go of your anger for a few seconds. Focus instead on a bright future and you’ll feel much better for it.
Of course, if you are still struggling to find true happiness in your life, you may wish to engage the services of a Life Coach. (And I happen to be a great one!). Maybe you’re holding on to limiting beliefs or you have an emotional block without realizing it. By engaging the support of a life coach, you can gain some critical insights into what might be getting in your way of happiness – and what you can do to feel better. I’m only ever a phone call away!
x Until next week, sending you love x
I would love to get to know you more, connect with me here.
