Photo credit: ©Ruth Hadikin
You may believe that happiness is related to success, achievements, money and possessions. However, you will probably find that after a short period of feeling proud for your achievements, you then feel let down, empty or even lost. So, you set another goal and continue to want more, falling into the “If only” lifecycle, saying, “I would be happy if only I did this, or had that.”
However, happiness isn’t something you get, it’s something you make. Happiness is about attitudes and choices. It’s never about stuff! You have the option of focusing on the positive things in your life, rather than on the negative. In other words, you can look at your blessings – what you have right now, or choose only to see what you are lacking. Along with that comes the result of being happy and content, or feeling miserable and neglected.
Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to do away with your vision and goals or stop striving to improve your professional or personal situation. It simply means you aren’t disappointed if you don’t achieve a specific goal, and that nothing that ‘happens’ can alter how you feel about your life.
Choosing to be happy is something you can do, regardless of what you have. The following are 4 steps you can take to be happy:
1. Create a Gratitude Journal. When you write about things that delight you on a daily basis, you will be pleased to discover that your life holds many things that bring you joy. You will was also be surprised to note that most things that bring you happiness don’t cost anything.
2. Evaluate your values and needs to determine what is most important to you. Then, find ways to incorporate those things into your daily life. You may realize that your values reflect your personal needs. When you are being true to your values, you feel happy.
3. Review your goals to find the personal motivation behind them. For example, if you want to make more money so you can buy a boat, you may discover that what you really want is to do fun things with your family. And you don’t need “things” for that!
4. Give to others. You will be happy when you are giving time and resources to your community and those in need. When you lighten the load for someone else, you lighten it for yourself.
Choose to be happy right now by focusing on what you have, not what you think you need. You’ll find that you have all that’s necessary to enjoy your life, enjoy your loved ones, and to smile every day. LCM
Key Points:
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Happiness isn’t something you get.
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Happiness is about attitudes.
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Choosing to be happy is something you can do regardless of what you have.