10 Ways to Increase Your Happiness

Hey everyone! Sorry I didn’t get a blog post up last week. It was crazy with lots of unexpected trips and responsibilities while my aunt was undergoing open heart surgery. She was never married and doesn’t have children, so she depends upon my parents, grandparents and my brother to help take care of her. I finally got some much needed rest this weekend and felt it was time I share something that was on my heart.

I love to focus on things that lift people up, encourage them to better their quality of life and help bring people TOGETHER! What is one thing that everyone wants? HAPPINESS! So I figured I would share some ways I’ve been helping to fulfill my own life with more happiness in hopes that it helps someone else out there!

”Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every moment with love, grace and gratitude!”

1. Regularly check your priorities and act accordingly. As I continue to grow older, these are continuing to change. But for me, family, faith, relationships, healthy habits and rest are so important to me. For instance, I got behind with work last week and needed a full day in my office, but I made it wait until tomorrow. My family came first last week and I needed rest over the weekend. Evaluating your own priorities and then making sure your actions keep them in line should help to fulfill your happiness tank! Know you cannot DO IT ALL, so do the things that are most important to you first! Right now I am loving nurturing my relationship with my loved ones, myself and my Savior!

2. Let go of guilt. Everything that has happened in your life has already happened. Let it go and quit feeling guilty. Learn from it, grow from it, better yourself from it, etc. I also have let go of feeling guilty when I choose to invest and take care of myself first. In order for me to better love, serve and spread happiness to others, I first have to be in tune with myself. For me this is 8-9 hours of sleep, working out almost every day and not being overwhelmed with too much to accomplish like I used to do to myself in the past. Guilt is a horrible feeling and it will block your happiness, so let it go!

3. Learn to forgive. If you can’t do this for THEM, then at least do it for YOU! Life really is too short for holding grudges. Forgiveness is a blessing that God wants us to act upon.

4. Mind over matter! CHOOSE to be happy ahead of time. Choose to see the positive rather than the negative. Instead of “why me?”, say “why not me?”. Know that you are strong and capable and can handle more than you even realize. Sometimes God gives his hardest battles to his strongest soldiers, and I think a strong mind takes a conscious effort to build. Happiness is a choice, use that strong mindset to help you be happy!

5. Don’t take anything too personally. Sometimes the things that others do that make us so mad or angry don’t even have anything to do with us personally. Know that other person may be struggling in such a way that you can’t even understand. When people hurt or let you down, sometimes it is more of a reflection on their own character. Don’t let it affect you to such a personal level. I cannot repeat this enough but DO NOT LOOK TO BE OFFENDED. This will automatically make you a happier person.

6. Be obsessively grateful! If you view the things you don’t have or those things you still need to work towards, you may never be fulfilled with happiness. But if you’re constantly grateful for ALL that you do have and ALL that you’ve been blessed with, then you’re well in your way to feeling happier. Let me tell you again, you ARE enough and you HAVE ENOUGH to be happy!

7. DO NOT PLAY THE COMPARISON GAME. This is the ultimate thief of joy, so don’t let the devil take you down this path. If this means you need to cut back on your social media scrolling time, then please replace that time with something that makes you feel happy!

8. Surround yourself with people who make you feel happy. Let others help you when you need it or if they offer. Your circle should lift you up, cheer you on and want you to be blessed with happiness and success. If you question if your circle of people wants the best for you, well you may need to re-evaluate your circle. Care less about what “general people” think about you. Now your spouse, family, closest friends and loved ones – their opinions can matter. I just don’t want to see someone doubting their self because of what someone who doesn’t really care about them “thinks”.

9: Create balance and overcome burnout! Boy oh boy, this has been a huge emphasis in my own life over the past year and a half! Know you can’t do it all in a day. Rome wasn’t build overnight, neither was I and neither were you.

10. Allow yourself and others grace. God gives us grace, so why shouldn’t we give ourselves and others this same pass? Now don’t give too much grace and just allow excuses all the time, but whenever you’re feeling incredibly hard on yourselves or others, remember the grace that God bestowed upon us!

I’m not going to make it #11 because I know most of you are used to seeing me regularly post about my fitness journey, but I feel I should also say that exercising regularly has helped me to get so much happier! It’s quiet and alone time that’s away from technology and the hustle and bustle of the work day. It really is true that exercise creates endorphins, and endorphins help make you happier. Mental health is so important to be, and exercising is one of THE BEST THINGS you can do for your brain! This is scientifically proven if you don’t believe me.

Anyways, it’s time I head to bed because I’ve got a busy work week starting tomorrow. I hope y’all enjoyed reading some ways to increase your own happiness! Life is too short to NOT be happy! If I can help make one one of my readers a little happier, then I will be more than fulfilled and even happier myself!