1. Be grateful- Stop what you are doing and think of
all the things you are grateful for. Being grateful is simply to be
appreciative of what you have. Too often we spend our time wanting things in
the future, a better job, a newer car, a life partner etc. wanting things does
not make us happy. In fact desire and wanting usually lead to a flood of
negative emotions. Being present brings us back to happiness and focusing on
what we have right now. Start by writing a list of all the things that you
have. Here are some categories to consider: career, personal growth, finance,
house/home, health, well being, close family, wider family, leisure, community,
partner and spirituality. You may notice that as you right you begin to smile
and feel happy about all that you already have.
2. Smile- smiling is an incredibly powerful tool in
increasing your sense of happiness. Even better smiling is a two-way street, if
you smile at someone they are likely to smile back and the mood in the
room/bus/mall goes up just a fraction. Ron Gutman does it best in his TED Talk
on smiling which you watch here.
3. Reflect- Spend five minutes everyday reflecting on
what went well. You found a parking spot, the meeting ended on time, your
spouse had dinner ready, and bedtime went smoothly. Instead of discussing all
the disappointments of the day re-frame to look for the good- and when you do
you’ll find there was lots of little things that made you smile.
4. Eliminate perfection- It is really hard to be
happy with anything or anyone when you are striving for perfection. Perfection
does not exist except in your mind. There is no perfect piece of art, no
perfectly executed plan, no “perfect” game (although baseball likes to think
so). So long as our mindset is at 100% or for some people 110% we will never be
happy with ourselves, we can always do/be better. Ease up a little, try to see
yourself as dogs do- perfect already, no need to do/be anything more.
5. Take a risk- just a little one. The more you take
small chances and succeed the more confident and happier you will become.
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