Tips For Happiness

‘I just want to be happy’, is a phrase I hear in my practice quite often.  My best tip for happiness is always the same thing, gratitude!  By changing your mindset to focus on what you are grateful for, your feelings will automatically shift towards happiness. Here are 4 steps to find your happiness! Begin each morning by telling yourself one thing you are grateful for.  The moment your alarm goes off, perhaps even before you open your eyes, certainly before you swing your legs off the side of the bed, most definitely before you splash water on your face, tell yourself one thing you are grateful for.  Do this every day, no excuses!  Of course, some mornings may be harder than others, but find something, anything to be grateful for...I am alive, I hear birds chirping, coffee...anything works.  Try changing what you are grateful for each morning.  Do this for one month. Now it’s time to add ending each day with gratitude.  When your day is complete, teeth are brushed, you are in bed cozy and comfortable with your eyes closed, tell yourself one thing you are grateful for.  Do this every day, no excuses!  Of course, some nights are harder than others, but find something, anything to be grateful for...I’m alive, I hear leaves rustling, food...anything works.  Try changing what you are grateful for each evening.  Do these for one month. Let’s add on...a gratitude mantra is a wonderful technique to use when you find yourself feeling anxious, stressed, overwhelmed, sad, tired, frustrated throughout the day.  Choose your mantra and play it on an ongoing loop in your mind.   It must be positive, affirming, and meaningful to you. Finally...a gratitude journal is a beautiful gift for yourself.  You deserve it!  Grab a journal and the writing utensils of your choosing and go for it.  You don’t have to be prolific or a literary genius!  Start by coloring if you must or writing one word.  Then write a phrase, a sentence, a paragraph that expresses gratitude.