Published in Sixty and Me
I’m on a happiness kick as 2017 begins. As intuitive and intelligent people, you know that happiness is a choice. And you undoubtedly get up every day and make a choice to be happy throughout your day.
But some days you just can’t turn on that happiness light. The button is stuck in the off mode.
You might have gotten up with negative thoughts of issues that are bothering you. Or you are stressed due to unpleasantness surrounding family or friendship matters. Or you are feeling bad about not finishing a project. Or maybe you are just feeing bad about yourself in a general way – the I’m gaining weight moment, a breakup of a relationship or anticipating a negative outcome of a meeting.
In order to turn on the happiness light, it’s first necessary to discover the source of your unhappiness. In this instance, name it out loud. And ask, “Why am I wallowing in a negative zone?”
Turning the happiness light back on requires cultivating happiness habits that will, in time, become second nature to you.
Here are a 5 subtle habits you can make in your daily routine to help you get out of the dumps and get you feeling on top of the world in a few weeks.
Wake up With an Attitude of Gratitude
Before you even get out of bed, pause and count your blessings, your successes, your good health, your family and your friends. Take joy that you are living a life that brings you happiness, peace and fulfillment. Here are more tips on how to develop the attitude of gratitude.
Do Not Overthink: Meditate, Release and Relax
Overthinking is the cause of too much worry, which in turn creates stress. The polar opposite is to practice mindful meditation – a practice that allows you to eliminate the constant barrage of thinking.
Letting your thoughts go by like clouds and watching them as they pass for 10 minutes a day while you breathe deeply is an important habit to cultivate in order to bring constant joy into your life.
Do Not Compare Yourself to Others
Being truthful to who you are is an important mantra. Your own progress, your individual path in life is like no other person’s on this earth. You are unique in your talents and skills, your accomplishments. Be proud of what you have done. Focus on your truthful nature and not on winning popularity contests.
Cultivate Optimism to Find Happiness
Happy people do not live with certain prescribed conventions. Happy people inherently have a prescribed set of positive attitudes.
You can train yourself to manufacture your own optimistic attitudes with daily intentions. No matter what the situation, the successful woman will always find a way to put an optimistic spin on it. Successful women know failure and disappointment are possibilities to grow and learn new lessons from life. People who think optimistically see the world as a place packed with endless opportunities.
Create a Peaceful, Happy Environment
When you wake up in the morning, what do you see? What colors are in your surroundings? Are they happy colors? Do you see your favorite pictures, knickknacks, and photos?
A beautiful environment makes you happy and can play a significant role in setting a happy tone for the day. If there is some place in your home that doesn’t feel energetic, revitalize that corner or clean that closet or organize that drawer and see what effect it has on your happiness.
Happiness is a mindset, not an end all in and of itself. Happiness allows you to enjoy the small things, while allowing you the time and energy to focus on some larger significant goals. More importantly, for deep and profound happiness to exist, you might create the habit of taking more time to enjoy and embrace the beauty in life.
Forget about embracing Facebook and embrace the stimuli and movement of enjoyable experiences. It’s the simple things in life that can be the most rewarding if we choose to fully experience them.
Which of these subtle habits appeals to you the most? What are you planning to do to cultivate happiness in your life this year? What are the small things that make you truly happy in your 60s? Please join the conversation.
