“You deserve to be happy. You deserve to live a life you are excited about. Don’t let others make you forget that.” – Unknown.
Happiness has been on my mind lately. When I’m alone and can really be with my thoughts, which is rare, they sometimes gravitate towards wondering whether or not I’m happy. Truly happy or just trucking along in my day-to-day life.
I’m still trying to figure out that answer. Most days I just go about my day and think about other things, like what bills need to be paid, making sure my son gets a bath that night, and whatever else comes to mind. I’m someone with a mind that is constantly thinking, from sunup to sundown. But does my own happiness come to mind? Rarely.
This made me wonder what I could do to lead a happier life. Or at least make the attempt to be happier. I know it’s more than just telling myself to be happy. I took to the trusty internet to find articles on what small steps can be taken, and I found a couple websites that gave some great suggestions. They had articles that were almost a decade old, but the information was still good. I’m going to take a little from each article to help give you a few ideas if you’re in the same boat as me.
Be with others who make you smile
Seems simple enough, right? No one wants to hang around a Negative Nancy or Debbie Downer. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve hung around people who are nice enough, but just made me feel drained after their negativity wore me down. Nowadays, I’ll exchange pleasantries with them, but I don’t spend as much time with them.
Imagine the best
Trying to picture the best-case scenario can help to keep optimism, which in turn can help a person to stay happy for a short time.
Do things you love
This is possibly one of the most obvious things someone could do to be happier. Whether it’s crafting, exercising, singing your heart out or cooking your favorite recipe, odds are that whatever you do will put a giddy up in your step and make you feel a little happier.
Bask in the simple pleasures.
I will admit the I indulge in my simple pleasures whenever I can. For example, whenever I go to the grocery store, I literally make sure to stop and smell the roses they sell. The way the subtle sweet smell hits my nose before I dive into crazy aisles of shoppers helps to put a smile on my face for a few minutes. Or eating a piece of chocolate while watching one of my favorite shows is pretty wonderful too. Just thinking about these makes me smile.
Ignore the opinions of others.
Now this is something I strongly support. For the most part, I’m able to block out the thoughts of others. Do I care what they think of what I wear, what I think or how I live my life? Nope. Do their opinions shape what I do or what I say? Most likely not.
Do what you love & love what you do.
This ties into the above point about doing things you love. For me, this particular one makes me think of my career. Do I love what I do? Absolutely. Do I love where I work? You bet. Having a career with a company that I enjoy working for makes me happier to come into the office or work from home. I remember working at other companies in town that drained the happiness and energy from me, and they never seemed to care whether or not their employees were happy or how to keep them happy. No wonder turnover was so high.
Express gratitude.
This one probably doesn’t make sense at first. It took me a minute to trail how this could bring someone happiness. Simply saying thank you or telling someone how much you appreciate something they did for you, can give you a sense of happiness just knowing that you acknowledged someone. Putting a smile on someone’s face can make you happier too.
Let go of anger.
I personally struggle with this one. I don’t consider myself to be an angry person. But when I feel like someone has disrespected me, taken me for granted or has been just plain rude, it makes me pretty angry. Sometimes if the person apologizes, I can let it go and move on. Other times, it takes a lot more than an apology to move on. Time helps the most for me to move on, but I don’t forget, which plays a part in why I have a hard time letting go of anger. Honestly, I could write a whole blog about this alone.
Live in the moment.
I struggle with this one too. Like I said at the beginning, my mind is constantly moving and thinking about so many things. Because my mind is elsewhere, it’s hard to stop, take a minute and live in the moment. It can be hard to remember to be present in what’s going on. I do my best by doing more things with my son and just being with him.
Smile.
How simple is this one? I’ve heard that smiling a lot can trick your brain in not only being happier but thinking more positively. I’ll be honest that I’ve never tried this. But I’ll also be the first to admit that I’d have to consciously remind myself to smile more to test this theory.
What about you? Are you a happy person? What do you do to make yourself happy when it can be hard sometimes? Do you have any tricks to put a smile on your face?
The team with Albuquerque Plumbing Heating & Cooling is pretty happy most days. Sure, we have our days when it’s hard to smile and stay positive. But we’re still able to. And if we’re feeling a little down, we find something in our day to turn that frown upside down and put us in a better mood. I can tell you that I’ll be working on my happiness more consistently. After all, everyone deserves to be happy.