Being happy is the most common wish people express. If you are one of them, you may not realise that you can control your happiness. There is even scientific research that proves you can change your whole life – just by changing your mood and making a conscious decision to be happy.
Consider these 9 steps if you want to improve your life.
1. Try to be happy. It may sound silly and corny, but if you make a little effort to be happy, you will get great results. Do things that make you feel good – whether it’s exercise, relaxing activities, putting on your favourite music or having an old friend over. Put in the effort and you will feel happier. Studies show that those who actively try to be happy achieve much more than those who don’t lift a finger and wait for happiness to come to them.
2. Set a goal to be happy. The happiest people are those who have set a goal to be happy. These people make the most of all the opportunities that can make them feel happy. It doesn’t matter what those goals are: health, relationships, career, family or any other part of life.
3. Focus on positivity – even if it’s for a short time. When you consciously participate in moments that make you happy, they stick in your memory more strongly, making it easier to remember them. Unfortunately, unpleasant moments also have this quality and seem to stick in the memory even more. But when you take some time to remember those little happy moments, no matter how short (just 10-20 seconds) – a child’s laughter, a favourite song, praise from your boss, or a few moments with a loved one – you remember them longer, and the new memories take the place of the negative ones in your brain. The more positive memories you accumulate, the happier you feel.
4. Focus on awareness. Those who are more mindful are more likely to feel happier than less mindful colleagues. Meditation can help you learn to do this – all you need to do is learn to quieten your mind for just a few minutes. Meditation has been scientifically proven to shift brain activity from the right frontal lobe of the brain (the place where depression, fatigue, stress and fears are often processed) to the left frontal lobe of the brain (the place associated with happiness and cheerfulness).
5. Smile as often as possible. Everyone probably knows that frowning moves more muscles than smiling. It’s true! Use your energy to smile and you will feel happier. It’s hard to be unhappy when you smile! It is important that you concentrate on positive thoughts, which will increase your level of happiness.
6. Express gratitude. When you realise and appreciate the things that make you feel happy, you release calming chemicals in your brain that can give you a state of happiness. Practising gratitude is a conscious way to happiness, and the best part is that you can control it.
7. Seek happiness and success. Some people think that success makes people happy, but in fact, being happy makes people successful. A positive attitude and flow of thoughts can help productivity – which will lead to success. Those who are more positive when given a challenge are more likely to rise to it and get great results.
8. Allow yourself to be happy. Too many people don’t realise that happiness is a choice one can make. Getting stuck in the negative, staying in a comfortable place and keeping bad habits only guarantees a negative outcome. Once you give yourself permission to be happy and make the decision to be grateful and positive, you will knock out all the negativity and open yourself up to a higher level of joy.
9. Be passionate. Passionate people have a greater capacity for joy because they open their brains to the right waves of joy. Meditate and indulge in inspiring ideas and passionate thoughts – this will change your brain!