“When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” John Lennon
Many people believe happiness is an automatic response to positive events.
You get a new job; you feel proud and accomplished.
You fall in love; you can’t wipe the smile off your face.
An unexpected financial windfall? You laugh until you cry.
What isn’t such a known concept is that happiness, rather than an automatic response to external factors, is actually a choice.
Regardless of whatever’s going on in life, you can still feel those same feelings of elation daily.
Of course, nobody expects you to be bursting out the bubbles amid a crisis, but, in general, happiness can be achieved with some simple daily discipline.
To achieve happiness regardless of what’s going on in life, follow these simple practices every day until happiness becomes a habit.
Keep a gratitude journal
Practising gratitude will help you focus on all the positives in your life and, in turn, attract more of the same.
Get into the habit of writing down three things you’re thankful for every day, twice a day. The list can be as simple as the food on your table, or a good friendship that brings you joy.
Once you start to consciously raise awareness to everything you feel thankful for, not only will you attract more of the same, you’ll also become a happier person in the process.
Surround yourself with positive influences
It’s said that we’re the sum total of the five people we spend the most time with. If you surround yourself with “Negative Influences” those whose glass is consistently half empty, yours will be drained too. Make strategic choices of who you spend your time with. Of course, you can never completely eliminate negative people, but you can certainly make conscious decisions to limit your time with people who drain you in exchange for positive people who naturally lift your energy making you a happier person.
Identify and address negative behavioural patterns
If you live with addiction, negative thought patterns or compulsive behaviour, this can consume every waking moment and severely impair your ability to feel genuine happiness. Seek professional guidance for any negative behaviours such as excessive alcohol consumption, excessive eating, shopping compulsion or any other unwanted habits. While many people indulge in behaviours to achieve the rush leading to short-term happiness, learning how to control them will lead to inner peace that contributes to overall happiness.
Exercise regularly
Exercise is a guaranteed way to release endorphins and get feelings of happiness flowing. Not only does exercise naturally make you feel happier, but the increased blood flow also encourages healing. You may also lose weight and tone up which will help you feel good about yourself increasing confidence and making you happier.
Set daily goals and see them through
Setting daily goals and seeing them through increases the level of Dopamine (the happy hormone) in the brain. When you wake, set 2 or 3 small goals for yourself for the day and follow through on them. If you have trouble seeing goals through or find you’re procrastinating, NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) combined with Hypnotherapy are powerful tools to help overcome procrastination.
Define what happiness means to you
Many people just go through the motions in life. They choose a career because it naturally follows on from their degree or they become a mum because it’s expected of them after marriage. Following the expected path can lead to feelings of frustration and being stuck.
Do you want to travel the world? Move to the city? Change career path? Visualise your happiness and clearly define the steps you need to take to achieve it.
Get a good night’s sleep
Lack of sleep can leave someone feeling lethargic, foggy, reaching for the wrong foods to get an energy hit and can severely impair mood. On the other hand, seven or more hours of solid sleep a night can increase energy levels, reduce cortisol (the stress hormone) and elevate mood to increase feelings of happiness.
Forgive
Holding onto negative events of the past can severely impact your happiness today. Identify triggers of anger, hurt or resentment and learn coping mechanisms to move past them. This may involve working alongside a professional such as a coach or hypnotherapist. Getting over past pain will release positive energy and contribute to your happiness today.
Take a course of hypnotherapy
If you regularly undertake any of the above habits that lead to sadness or you’re not sure what’s going to make you happy, contact Jade today to find out how coaching, NLP and hypnotherapy can help you re-introduce positive patterns of behaviour and develop positive thought processes.
Hypnotherapy is an all-round natural therapy that will increase feelings of happiness today and long into the future. Hypnotherapy can help reframe existing subconscious beliefs, control stress, improve coping abilities, reframe past negative memories and create new ways of thinking. Where you may once have been in the habit of feeling low or depressed in mood, hypnotherapy can help happiness become your natural state.
To find out how you can choose to live a happier life, contact Jade today.