Wanna be the happiest person you know? Yes? Done! Do these five things everyday!
1. Say Thanks.
Gratitude is very powerful. When we are in a funk it is easy to focus on the negative, what is not going right, what we don’t have, who wronged us. This thinking is natural, but it perpetuates unhappiness and keeps us stuck in the funk. Science shows that even during tough periods in our lives, taking a little time to focus your energy on gratitude( like a gratitude journal or grateful reflection) leads to a significant improvement in our well-being. One really powerful exercise is to keep a gratitude journal and take some time every day to reflect upon all the things that are going well in your life, things you are thankful for, and what you love. We create our own reality, so create a reality that is focused on abundance vs. lack and love vs. anger. I promise you will feel happier.
2. Treat Yourself.
Take a time for yourself everyday. Ready for it…Drop everything and focus on you! Make yourself a priority. This could be something as simple as taking come time to meditate for 5 minutes or going for that workout you don’t think you have time for, or you could read a book, getting massage, doing your nails, or even sit quietly enjoying nature. Do whatever makes you feel good, as long as it is focused only on you. This is not selfish, this is giving yourself the same care, time and love you give to others. Part of the treating yourself (in my book) is reconnecting with and spending a little quality time (QT) with yourself. Get reacquainted with who you are, so you can realize your specialness and value. One suggestion I would make is not treat yourself to “stuff”. When we purchase “stuff” to make us happy, we rely on that stuff to fill us up and affirm our value. But we will always end up feeling unsatisfied and needing to purchase more value later. On the other hand, if you focus that energy on yourself and find value within, you will start to love that cherish yourself more. When we find something or someone we value and cherish we generally want to treat them well. And this is what I want for you, to treat yourself well, always.
3. Smile.
Give us a big toothy grin, even if you have to fake it! Studies show that even a fake smile will make a person feel happier! Smiling has some pretty profound proven physical effects, it lowers blood pressure and decreases stress hormones and boosts your mood. I love this TED Talk by Ron Gutman The Hidden Power of Smiling; it shows a lot of the scientific evidence about the benefits of smiling, it’s great! So when you need a little boost, find something that makes you smile, like watching a funny goat video on Youtube (we don’t give goats enough hilarity credit!), your favorite funny movie or call up a friend that always makes you smile. Smiling is magic do it often and spread it around!
4. Have fun.
Recently I was talking to a friend and fellow coach about how I was just feeling kinda blah, in a bit of a funk. She asked me about what I had been doing lately, why I may be feeling this way. I said, “I don’t know, I have just been so busy, work has been busy and family life has been busy. I have been juggling so many balls.” And she said, “sounds like you aren’t having any fun! Go out and have some fun!” I had an Aha moment! Fun is a core part of my personality and I had been neglecting that! And although everything I was doing in my life was enjoyable (I love my family, work and home), it’s easy to get into default mode, and just get busy “doing”. So the next day I took my daughter to a park, where we met some friends, rode the little train and had a picnic. It was so great to get out, mix things up and have some fun. So, if you are feeling blah, mix things up a bit and have some fun! Have a picnic or dance party in your kitchen (this is one of my favorite things to do!), go to coffee with a friend, watch something hilarious and laugh your pants off. Bottom line is, increase the fun in your life! Squeeze the most out of this juicy orange we call life (is that a weird metaphor?), have some FUN today!
5. Give it away.
And by it, I mean kindness. The best thing to do to get out of the cycle of funk-dom, a place where we focus on our own woes, is to focus more on others. When we take the time to do something for someone else, we get a huge emotional reward. Here is a quick story: I was at the grocery store one Sunday (craziest day to go shopping!) and I walked up to the yogurt section. I’m not sure if you noticed, but there are about 12million(give or take) different types of yogurts out there and it can be a bit overwhelming. Well, when I walked up to this mammoth yogurt section, there was the woman who was intently focused, on the different types yogurts. I grabbed my intended yogurt and off-handedly said to her “Oh, we love that yogurt (one in her hand), it’s one of our favorites”. She then went into a long (slightly frenzied) explanation of how her kiddos are picky, and they only like certain types of yogurt and normally she has to drive to a few different stores to get what they like…” I listened to her story and again said, “this is a delicious brand of yogurt and I hope her kids really liked it” then I added “wow, I can tell you are a really good mom and your kids sure are lucky to have you.” This kind of stopped the conversation in its tracks. For her because, I could see that mothering is something she takes great pride in and it’s also a job where we don’t get a lot of validation. And for me, I got a surge of energy and joy that struck me like a lightening bolt, zing! Because I hadn’t intended to say it, it just kinda flowed through me (divinity) and the impact I felt in that small moment was pretty profound, it felt incredible. Shortly after, I said bye to the mother and wished her well. I really don’t know how it impacted her, but what I do know is that my day, even week was better and I had more positive energy to give to others. So if you are feeling down, go out of your way to be kind, say something nice, make someone feel special, smile, open a door, let people go in front, any little thing will do. Your small acts of kindness may make someone’s day better or they may not even notice, that doesn’t really matter. Because the real power of the act, is that it will bring you joy and that will make your world a better, happier place to live.
We all want more joy and happiness in our lives and we often forget that it’s the simple things in life that bring us the most happiness!
Now, I want to hear from you! Tell me about what makes you happy and brings you the most joy!
With love and happiness,
P.s. Quick question…Do you want a happier, more beautiful life? Then contact me today about setting up a free discovery session, so we can start designing a plan for you to live the life of your dreams!
