We all want to be happy. But many of us think happiness is out of our reach, beyond our control. That if you want to be happy you have to work really hard for it. But that’s not true.
Being happy doesn’t always take a lot of work. It can come from simply being in the moment. Of allowing yourself to fully enjoy that moment of life you are experiencing.
How can you get happy?
You won’t get happy waiting for happiness to happen. You need to act. Take the first step.
Live in the moment.
What can you do now – right now – to make yourself feel better? Is it a hug? A smile from someone?
Mindfulness is handy when you’re trying to live in the moment. Mindfulness can help manage depression. It can also manage anxiety. By focusing on the here and now, you are stopping your mind from listening to those wandering negative thoughts. You are giving yourself permission to be happy.
Practice kindness.
Do something nice for someone else. The adage, “helping others makes you feel better” isn’t wrong. It works through vicarious pleasure, meaning that by helping someone else feel good you get to share a certain part of that emotion.
Whether it’s someone you know or a stranger, spur of the moment or planned out, practicing kindness can make you happy.
Embrace your spirituality.
Research shows that people who participate in their local church, synagogue, mosque or other preferred spiritual community are happier. It’s because there is a sense of community, of belonging to a group that focuses on taking the person to the next higher level of being. Spirituality involves sharing of emotions, embracing faults, and learning to love yourself. All these bring happiness.
Even reading spiritual literature can be helpful. Not religious? There are ethical societies and movements that get people thinking beyond themselves. Movements like the Law of Attraction show people how to bring powerful positive experiences into their realities.
Unplug yourself from social media.
People who spend more time on Facebook and other social media report lower self-esteem, less connection to others, and fewer positive emotions. Most people feel judged by social media, making a person feel worse about themselves. It’s well researched that social media increases anxiety, depression, and social isolation. So unplugging yourself from social media on a daily basis is healthy and likely to bring more happiness into your life.
Focus on time instead of money.
More money doesn’t buy happiness. But having less money is associated with pain and depression.
So you have to balance how much money you have with how you feel about life. One way to do this is by focusing on time.
When you realize that time is precious, you can make better decisions on how to spend that time. Like a non-renewable resource, once a certain moment passes it is gone. Mindfulness helps you focus on the importance of the moment. By spending your time in a way that is more fulfilling, you will be happier.
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