Q. Are you truly happy? Do you even know what it means to be happy and what it takes to achieve happiness? These are important questions for anyone who is seeking happiness to ask themselves.
A. The truth of the matter is that happiness, like anything else in life, needs to be nurtured. The following are a few tips that can help create happiness.
· Understand what it is that will make you happy. Everyone has unique requirements for attaining happiness and what makes one person happy may be very different from what makes someone else happy. Revel in your individuality and do not worry about whether or not your desires are comparable to those of your peers.
· Make a plan for attaining goals that you believe will make you happy. Your mood will very likely increase as you pursue your goal because you will feel better about yourself for going after something you value.
· Surround yourself with positive people. It is easy to begin to think negatively when you are connected to negative people. Also surround yourself with people who have good energy.
· When something goes wrong try to figure out a solution instead of wallowing in self pity. A short period of self pity, then move on.
· Spend a few minutes each day thinking about the things that make you happy. Write them down. Are you getting closer?
· It is important to take time each day to do something healthy/healing for yourself. Whether you treat yourself to lunch, taking bubble bath, listening to your favorite music or a movie.
· Finding the humor in situations can also lead to happiness. While there are times that require you to be serious, when it is appropriate, find a way to make light of a situation that would otherwise make you unhappy.
· Maintaining your health is another way to achieve happiness. Eat healthy, exercise (AKA “move your body”) and get enough sleep.
Happiness is hard to define but most people are aware of whether they are happy or not. Many people believe that happiness is a form of luck and that some people are destined to be happy while others are destined to be unhappy. The tips in this column are small but meaningful steps that you can take each day to lead to comfort and happiness.
