Personal Growth Success

Living a happy, resilient and optimistic life is wonderful, and is also good for your health. Being happy actually protects you from the stresses of life. Stress is linked to top causes of death such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke.

One of the better things ever said is – ‘The only thing in life that will always remain the same is change’, and in our life we have the power to make the necessary changes if we want to. Even if we find ourselves in an unbearable situation we can always find solace in the knowledge that it too will change. When you are in depths of a tragedy or a life struggle, always remember not to give in to despair because “this too shall pass”.

Social networks or relationships are essential to happiness. People are different, accept people for who or what they are, avoid clashes, constant arguments, and let go of all kinds of resentments. If arguments still seem unavoidable, try and make an effort to understand the situation and put yourself in the other person’s shoes.

Happiness is actually found in everyone, increasing it is a way to make a life more wonderful and also more healthy. To be happy starts with the decision to be a happy person. Abraham Lincoln observed that most people for most of the time can choose how happy or stressed, how relaxed or troubled, how bright or dull their outlook to be. The choice is fairly simple… choose to be happy.

There are several ways by which you can do this.

Being grateful is a great attitude. We have so much to be thankful for and reminding yourself of your blessings is helping in maintaining perspective, gratitude, and humility. Thank the taxi driver for bringing you home safely, thank the cook for a wonderful dinner and thank the guy who cleans your windows. Also thank the mailman for bringing you your mail, thank the policeman for making your city safe, and thank God for being alive.

News is stressful… get less of it. Some people just can’t start their day without their daily dose of news. Try and think about it, 99% of the news we hear or read is bad news. Starting the day with bad news is just not a sensible thing to do. It’s ok to stay informed about current events and world news, but keep it to a minimum.

A spiritual connection is also recommended. Building a relationship with God (your “Higher Power” or whatever you are comfortable referring to Him as) is essential to understanding who YOU really are and to finding the joy you are destined for. Being part of a religious or church group can also foster inner peace with all of the singing, sacraments, chanting, prayers and meditations.

Manage your time. Time is invaluable and too important to waste. Time management can be viewed as a list of rules that involves scheduling, setting goals, planning, creating lists of things to do and prioritizing. These are the core basics of time management that should be understood to develop an efficient personal time management skill. These basic skills can be fine tuned further to include the finer points of each skill that can give you that extra reserve to make the results you desire.

Laugh and laugh heartily everyday. Heard a good joke? Tell your friends or family about it. As they also say -’Laughter is the best medicine’.

Express your feelings, affections, friendship and passion to people around you. They will most likely reciprocate your actions. Try not to keep pent up anger of frustrations as it is bad for your health. Instead find ways of expressing them in a way that will not cause more injury or hurt to anyone. Journaling is always a great outlet, but talking to the person who you may have a point of contention with in a calm and adult manner usually leads to a sense of relief and better understanding.

Working hard brings tremendous personal satisfaction. It gives a feeling of being competent in finishing our tasks. Accomplishments are necessary for all of us, they give us a sense of value. Work on things that you feel are worthy of your time and when you complete them take a moment to appreciate what you have done. Applaud yourself.

Learning is a joyful exercise. Try and learn something new everyday. Learning also makes us expand and broaden our horizons. And could also give us more opportunities in the future. Knowledge is power ad once knowledge meets understanding you gain wisdom.

Get physical! Run, jog, walk and do other things that your body was made for. Feel alive.

Avoid exposure to negative elements like loud noises, toxins and hazardous places.

Those are just a few simple things you can do everyday to be happy. Always remember the quote from Abraham Lincoln,

“Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”