Today is International Day of Happiness and to make your day a happy one, I have added a few suggestions at the end of today’s post to inspire you to make today a happy one for yourself and those around you.
 
This special day of celebration was founded by Jayme Illien “to inspire, mobilize and advance the global happiness movement”.
 
So many of us struggle to define happiness, not from a philosophical or psychological perspective but rather our own. Does a happiness movement create and radiate happiness to such an extent that it makes you happy? It might, if you are open to it. Notice when you are surrounded by happy people, it can lift your spirits. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.
 
Is happiness defined by economic status, wealth or material things? Some say yes, or at least these are important factors, but does this mean we have never met or seen people in wealthy or economically strong environments unhappy?
 
Are poor people ever happy? Are rich people ever unhappy? of course they are – money may not bring happiness, but it certainly makes life easier. Is happiness about life being easier? We know that contentment is a core factor in happiness, but can contentment only happen if we are achieving all our material goals?
 
While there are seldom clear answers to these questions, quite often driven by perspective, there are a great many people in this world at polar ends of the economic scales that are living happy and unhappy lives. There are so many factors that affect our ability or desire to be happy and these factors exist across all humanity. It is about how we approach them, in fact, determine whether or not we are or will be happy.
 
Some of us are a little more hardwired for happiness but all of us have to work at it. Happiness is not a specific destination, it is the result of how we act, live our lives, and how we react to what life brings us. We can learn to be happier by changing our habits – our habitual thoughts, beliefs, emotions and behavior.

Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions. – Dalai Lama
 
Here are a few suggestions to bring more happiness into your day:

• Play upbeat music and dance around – get your body moving!
• Smile more today especially at strangers – share your happiness smile!
• Ask someone how they are doing and actively listen to them – connection!
• Treat yourself – sign up for a class, a bath, manicure, a new hairstyle – Love yourself!
• Write a card, email or text message to someone that has been supportive and attentive to you lately and tell them how grateful you are.
• Buy coffee or a sweet treat for someone, just because. 
• Get outside and be with nature. Breath in the fresh air.

 
We must have the desire to be happy, put the energy and effort into creating our own happiness. It truly is an inside job – it is not about materiality or status, it’s about how we feel about ourselves and our circumstances. It is ultimately our choice. Far too often we allow others to hi-jack our happiness. Be strong, be grateful and above all be happy – you deserve it!
 
Enjoy International Day of Happiness!
 
If you would like help in applying this to your life, personal or business - please click here to book in a complimentary call with me Schedule-A-Call , or check out my upcoming class.

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1.   Clarity 
Get clear in your mind what success looks like to you. Declutter your mind of negative thoughts, limiting beliefs and behaviours. Recognise how much negative talk you tell yourself. Consciously change them to positive thoughts of yourself and your future. You will gain clarity on what beliefs, values and purpose matter most to you. This takes practice and is the most important part for long lasting change. Don’t believe everything you think. It may just be your opinion not fact.
 
Experiment:

• Say out loud what it is you would like to bring into your life.
• Example: “I am ready to apply to that new position” “I am optimistic in finding a new loving relationship”
• Did you have any negative thoughts/beliefs that you heard from your inner voice?  - “I’m not smart enough for that position” “I’m unlucky in the romance department”
• If so, is it coming from past experiences or did you hear this negativity from someone in your past
• Is it a fact or just an opinion?
• What if you changed it to a positive statement “I am perfect for that new position” “I have great qualities for a loving relationship to be successful”

 
2.   Courage
Step out of your comfort zone. You have probably noticed that after a while, the comfort zone is boring, predictable and stagnant.
Anytime we feel anxious to try something new, we tend to revert back to our comfort zone where it feels safe and certain and nothing is new and scary.
If you fear you will be a loser or failure revert back to the negative thoughts/belief experiment before moving on.
Turn your fear into a strength If you feel fear then you know you’re doing something new and challenging as long its healthy and safe. 
Don’t wait to feel Confident. Feeling confident comes after action. Stop avoiding what scares you when it comes to creating the life you want. You may think that avoiding them is doing you no harm but that’s not true. You will continue to beat yourself, feel small, and allow others to step up and shine instead of you.
 
Experiment:

• Challenge yourself to do something that is normally out of your comfort zone – Volunteer to speak at a meeting/presentation for your department.
• What happened? Did you die? Did you add value to the meeting? How did you feel after? What did you predict would happen? Did your prediction come true?

 
3.   Creativity
Meditate and visualise to allow creativity to expand each day. It will feel more real and achievable. It builds enthusiasm and motivation. By quieting your conscious mind, you are quieting the inner critic. If you believe it, you will achieve it! Clients tell me they want to achieve “something” “sometime” but not clear on the what, the when, and equally important the how. Spend time visualising what it is you want to change. Give it a date of being accomplished and visualise how much time will be required each day, week, month to get it done by that time. Also, add in how good you will feel when you have successfully reached that goal.
 
4.   Commitment
Commit your energy and time to the goal in mind. Make the effort and make it a priority. You will approach your goal with laser focus. Don’t make a goal simply a dream. Without action that’s all it will ever be – just a dream, a wish. The more energy and tenacity you put into it, the more successful and quicker you will achieve it. If you hit blocks or rejection, think outside the box. Go around them or through them. We learn from things that don’t always go right. Learn from the mistakes and try doing it differently next time.
 
5.   Consistency 
Use S.M.A.R.T. goals to help you achieve new desires/goals into your life.
Using SMART goals will help you see your goal is specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound. This will keep you motivated and driven to see it to the end. It’s a map of the future goal.
Baby steps are better than no steps toward your goals. Keep motion going even on the bad days. Successful people don’t let those bad days slow them down. Set out a block of time each day and silence or unplug all distractions. No matter what speed your going, as long as you are going in the right direction, with laser focus on the goal day by day, you will achieve results.
 
This is your life and you can choose to stay in your comfort zone and be bored or you can stretch yourself and learn and grow by taking action and live a happy fulfilled life. If you begin to challenge yourself, remember you will need to ride out the emotional rollercoaster that comes with uncertainty and change. It will sometimes feel like you are taking 2 steps forward and 3 steps back. Your inner critic may give you endless reasons to quit but always question your thoughts. Are they trying to protect you, provide for you or prevent you from taking action? Is it fact or fiction? Hang in there, stick with it, take responsibility and reap the rewards of your efforts.
 
If you would like help in applying this to your life, personal or business - please click here to book in a complimentary call with me Schedule-A-Call  ​
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www.ki4life.com or [email protected]