10 Ways to Be Happier in Life
As I sit here and write this, I can honestly say that I am truly, deeply happy for the first time in my life.
It might have taken 28 years of life-experience, partaking in many self-destructive habits, a complete changing of careers, and a lot of inner work to get here, but it is the first time in my life that I can wake up and honestly say that from the inside to the outside, I am content.
Happiness can be defined in a lot of ways, but I define it as truly being in the moment. Being IN your body. Living your one and only life making choices that bring you joy, and not choosing things that do not bring you into your highest vibration. We all have to do hard things, but we should be filling up our lives with the things that make us feel alive and whole. Life is too damn short for you to waste all of this energy trying to be a any other way!
I’m here to remind you of that, beautiful. Your life should make you happy, not make you feel as though you’re not enough, less than, anxious, depressed, or lonely. You deserve happiness. We all do.
However, in a world that tells us that we need to constantly compete, out-prove, compare, judge, or that we are not enough, it’s freaking hard to find happiness! It takes a lot of work. It takes the changing of old habits that we’ve been trained to do into new ones that can truly allow you to be happy in life. I say we, because I’m in this too!
Being happy doesn’t mean that you wake up and everything’s wonderful.
Being happy means that you choose to stay connected, content, and at peace no matter what life brings you.
Mood follows action. These actions take practice, but if you want to live your life to your potential, they’re worth practicing.
Remember that you are not your body, your achievements, or your metrics. You are a soul, living in a body. That is it. You are one with spirit, God, Source, the Universe. You are the same. You are an innate being that cannot be defined or measured. Remembering this and accepting this is true happiness will emerge from. Release your attachments to your external world and focus on the internal world inside of you (it’s amazing!). Inside, there is love, pure consciousness, and life. Always connect back to this.
Let go of the numbers. In all aspects of life. As someone who forever defined themselves by likes and followers, I can tell you that those do not define me anymore. I still struggle to not refresh that like page after a post, but I remind myself that I am sharing and expressing, not trying to validate myself a certain number. That is not where happiness lies. Let go of the obsession with the salary, the weight, the calories, the followers, or even the number of things you checked off of your to-do list. You don’t have to let go of them completely, but do not let them change your mood or define your happiness.
Always give back. When you feel in lack, give more. It’s as simple as that. When I feel like I don’t have enough time, I spend extra time doing things that benefit someone else or something I stand for. For example, today I felt really rushed and short on time, so I took an extra 10 minutes out of my schedule (that I didn’t think I had) to go pick up trash outside. I felt so good afterwards making even just that small difference and it propelled me into a better work day. I promise, the 10 minutes didn’t really inconvenience me. It gave back to me. Whether this be in the form of money, time, or just listening to someone, always go back to giving and being of service.
Drink plenty of water and get plenty of rest. It’s the cliché and very often given advice, but it’s advice that is worth being given multiple times! Your cells need water to function properly and your body needs rest. Keep a good sleep hygiene schedule and keep your body nourished with water and it will be much easier to be happy in your day-to-day life.
Always learn. I make it a habit to read every single night, even if it is just one page! When we learn new things we expand our mindset, our idea on certain topics, our language, and our goals. We learn what we do and don’t like, and we grow from there. We are not meant to stay stagnant - happiness will never be achieved if we just stay the same. As human beings, we are meant to grow, evolve, and learn, and doing so will bring us happiness.
Look at your life and notice your energy around things. Assess your day! Write down your day from start to finish and ask yourself: Do these things make me happy? Do they bring me joy? What is my energy around them? While you might not be able to let go of things completely, you can slowly take actions steps in shifting them out of your life and making them less and less prominent in your day. The same goes for things that create high vibration energy in your life; write down actions steps for how you can bring more of these things into your life. Don’t just write them down, DO them, beautiful!!
Don’t feel guilty for saying no. Most days I am in bed by 8:30-9:00 and I’m up by 5:30. I don’t eat food that doesn’t make my body feel good or that boggs my focus down. I don’t put myself in situations that don’t align with me, such as gossiping, mindless shopping, or events that I don’t really want to attend. This means that I say no to a lot of things, but I am much happier when I take actions that align with my true self and my goals. It’s definitely a balance and you do need to work hard and some things you don’t want to, but if you can say no to things that pull you out of alignment with that true self, you will be happier, I promise. And don’t you dare feel guilty about choosing yourself!
Eat plants, not processed foods! 95% of serotonin, the happy hormone, is made in your gut. That’s insane! A happy and balanced gut will lead to a better and happier life, period. What you put in your body matters. Choosing foods that don’t have additives or chemicals that cause the gut to be inflamed and choosing foods that heal your gut (fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, legumes, etc.) is going to lead you to increased happiness.
Get to know yourself. How can you be happier in life if you don’t know what makes you happy?! In order to take the action steps to be happier, you have to know what makes you happy. These are the external things that can help to shift your internal state. I recently found that I really like roller blading and DJ music. Who knew?! Whether this be painting, cooking, gardening, dancing, being a make-up artist or organizing events, find what makes you happy! This is really fun, actually, because you might discover things you didn’t even know made you happy until you paused to question it.
Get out in nature. The ultimate healing hack in my life that has adjusted my happiness level is getting into the sun, the forest, or in the water. Nature is the most healing force. It is God in physical matter. He created it, just as he created you, and you are deeply connected to it. At least once a week or even more if you can, find a place where you can be in nature with no music, no talking, and nothing to do, for as long as you can squeeze it in your schedule. I am currently using it to sync with my cycle and heal my abnormal periods, as well as tap into my more feminine energy. It’s amazing! I know that when I spend time in the sun and trees, I am without a doubt happier and more content in the busyness of life.
I know these tools can help you just like they have helped me! Let me know which ones you incorporate (hopefully all of them!) and the difference you feel in your life when you do. You are worth taking the time for and you DESERVE to be happy. Now, you just have to choose it.
Xx,
Bethany