Are you a happy person? Do you wake up every morning wildly excited by the day ahead? Do you savour every moment of your life? Or are you, like many others, stuck in a rut of general dissatisfaction with how things are?
There’s a common misconception that in order to be happy there are certain things that we need first. For example, we might think that we’ll be happier as soon as we nab that dream job, find a new man or have a wardrobe bursting with designer clothes.
We’re just going to throw a controversial thought out there (bear with us) but what if you could be happy right now? Yes, right now, without the new career, the sexy boyfriend and an armful of Chanel.
The thing about happiness is that it’s something that is relatively easy to cultivate and for most of us, our default emotion is happiness (we just need to get rid of all the boring ‘life’ stuff that stops us from experiencing it fully).
If you’d like to wake up smiling every single day and start seeing the magic in life, there are a few simple things you can do that will immediately brighten up your world.
Are you ready to get happy?
Wake up with a positive attituide and watch the rest of your day flow
Say a morning affirmation: When you wake up, the first thought in your head shouldn’t be “Ugh! Is it Friday yet?” instead it should be upbeat and happy. An affirmation is a phrase that you repeat over and over again, until your brain starts to believe that it’s true. Take a post-it and write a positive affirmation on it. You could try something like “Today is the best day of my life!” or “I’m going to have such a fantastic day!”
Stick it directly beside your bed so you’ll see it as soon as you open your eyes. As you go about your morning routine, repeat the affirmation to yourself. You’ll be amazed at how much it will boost your mood.
Say “I love you” every single day: Make it a point to say “I love you” to one person, one animal and to yourself every single day. If you’re in work, why not text your boyfriend and profess your love? Why not ring your mam and tell her you love her? When you get home in the evening, give your dog a cuddle and tell him that you love him. When we become aware of all the people and things that we love in our lives, we instantly feel happier. Do this every single day and watch your life and your relationships improve dramatically.
Smile more: Whenever anyone asks you how you are, allow yourself to smile before you answer. If your happiness starts to wear off a little bit or if you feel a bad mood creeping in, fake a smile until you start to smile naturally. The best thing about our brains is that we can trick them, so even if you’re not feeling happy, forcing a smile will send a signal to your brain to start releasing feel-good, happy chemicals.
Always be grateful: Right before you go asleep every night, spend five minutes replaying your day in your head and think of three things that you’re grateful for. It doesn’t matter if it’s food, a funny conversation or the fact that it didn’t rain, whatever it was just be grateful. Do this every evening and you’ll wake up feeling better than you have in a long time.
