15 Secrets To Living a Happy Life
<5 min read>
“Being happy doesn’t mean everything is perfect. It means you’ve decided to look beyond the imperfections.” -Unknown
Living a happy life isn’t as hard as it may seem. Of course, it’s impossible to be 100% happy every minute of the day, but you have the power to decide how you will react to situations. Life is going to throw you curve balls whether you like it or not, but you have the choice to be optimistic (look for the good in the situation) or focus on the negative.
Now more than ever, it’s easy for us to feel unconfident, ashamed, depressed and just plain unhappy. In case you haven’t noticed, we are constantly bombarded with people telling us how we should look, act, dress, what we should buy, etc. There is way too much noise out there and women are experiencing depression at twice the rate of men.
We all crave immediate happiness at times, but it’s important to be aware that we can strive for happiness that lasts longer than 5 minutes. According to the website Odyssey, there are four levels of happiness that can we attain.
Image Courtesy of Odyssey
As I look at this graph, it makes sense why so many people are unhappy. If you only seek immediate pleasure from things or people, that’s only the first level of happiness. I don’t know about you, but I want to do things that extend my happiness for long periods of time. I need immediate gratification at times, but it’s the enduring happiness that I’m after.
Life is too short to be unhappy. CLICK TO TWEET
If you are going through a tough time, or just want to be a happier person. Here are 15 secrets to living a happy life.
Appreciate Life
Stop focusing so much on the end goal that you forget to live in the moment. Life is such a precious gift. Take time to appreciate your talents, family, friends, nature, etc.
Choose Friends Wisely
The people you hold close to your heart should love, respect and genuinely care for you. Everyone does not deserve a seat at your dinner table. Learn to see people for who they really are and if they don’t uplift or inspire you, make a decision on whether you need them in your life.
Continuously Learn
If you’re not learning, you cannot grow. Keep reading and acquiring knowledge no matter how old you are.
Problem Solve
You won’t always have the answers, but that doesn’t mean you can’t figure your problems out. Be creative. You will be surprised at how well you manage to fix things around you.
Do What You Love
If you aren’t happy, do something different. You will find the most success doing what makes you happy. What would you do if money or time weren’t an issue?
Laugh
Laughing is one of nature’s free medicines. People who laugh and smile are generally more happy than people who don’t.
Forgive
You will find the most personal growth when you learn to forgive others. This doesn’t mean that you have to call up everyone that you dislike and let them know that you forgive them. There are plenty of ways to release the pain, hurt and anger you may feel about a person. This article gives has a neat seven step process you can use.
Invest in Relationships
Building and maintaining relationships is so important to your happiness. Make sure to keep people you love/like close and in the loop of your life.
Keep Your Word
Your reputation is all you have at the end of the day. Make sure you do your best to keep your word and promises.
Mind Your Own Business
It’s hard enough managing your own life without worrying about others. If you have time to gossip and judge others, you need a busier life.
Be Optimistic
Seeing the good in every situation is the best way to be happy. When you focus on the positive, you can truly see the beauty in life.
Love Unconditionally
Love is one of the best gifts we can give someone. For those people in your life that show up for you, support you and love you no matter what, give them the same love in return.
Be Proactive
Make sure you are setting goals and knocking them out. When you set goals that you don’t accomplish, that can damper how you feel about yourself.
Be Confident
Know your strengths and use them to build your confidence. Having confidence is crucial to getting what you want in life.
Take Responsibility
No one is perfect. When you mess up, admit it and move on. In fact, the quicker you admit it, the faster you can move on.
Life is too short to be unhappy. I am confident, if you start to incorporate some or all of these steps into your life, you will be able to start living a happy life. Here’s video from SoulPancake on the art of positive thinking, that I LOVE. I hope you enjoy it!
Xoxxo,
Ashton Lynne