Happiness Goals.

Dynamic Maggi by Ali Brohi

In the last few months thousands if not millions of people have been worried, scared, frustrated and upset by the roller coaster ride that is our economy. But what can you do in the face of all the instability, bad news and fear? Now is the time to focus on yourself.

Start by beginning to make a set of happiness goals. Some of the things that can bring you happiness may be health, friends, leisure activities and hobbies, work satisfaction, being creative, learning a new skill, have harmonious relationships, and contributing to a goal bigger than yourself.

So how do you begin? Let’s dream big! Start by imagining your perfect life. What is different about it? What kind of job do you have? Do you have more spare time? Are you more relaxed? Do you workout everyday? What activity gets you animated and excited?

Now start listing the steps it will take to achieve your dreams. List big steps and little steps. They could be:

1. Read more books.

2. Start a garden.

3. Exercise 3 times a week.

4. Get rid of debt.

5. Have more fun.

A goal list will give you direction and purpose. Writing down your goals and posting them where you can see them helps keep you on track. I suggest keeping your list on your computer where you can update them at will.

Make weekly and monthly goals. For instance, for your monthly goal, you could add steps to your goals, such as:

1. Books – make a book list of favorite subjects, authors and titles.

2. Garden – subscribe to magazine, or join garden club.

3. Exercise – buy new videos to make workout more fun.

4. Debt - save $200 a month.

5. Fun – go to the movies one night this month.

You could also have long term goals and short term goals. Your long term goal may be to start a new career, and your short term goal could be to take a career test online to find out what kind of work you like to do.

Remember not everyone enjoys the same things as you. Don’t let anyone criticize your goals and dreams. Some people might love to take a dance class and meet new people, while others would be more content in a solitary pursuit like writing or painting. Do what you love – not what others think you should do.

What could be better than working on your happiness? Just the thought of it makes me smile! Of course I can’t begin to dive into all the joys and benefits of increasing your happiness. But I know from experience that is possible. For more great insight in happiness visit these sites:

Top ten happiness tips

The Happy Guy

The Happiness Project

The Happiness Institute

Happiness.com

30 Happiness Tips

52 Tips for Happiness and Productivity

9 Tips that Lead to Happiness

7 Tips for Making Yourself Happier in the Next Hour

Christmas Sprit

City and County Building, Denver, CO by trythil

I love Christmas time. It’s so beautiful and nice. I love the twinkling lights and sparkling snow, the hot cocoa and happy music. Have you ever heard music cheerier than what they play at Christmas? If it was a food it’d be a 10,000 calorie dish it’s so sweet and nice.

People are kinder too. I’m constantly amazed at the generosity of the American people. While they give to hurricane relief, flood relief and help with emergencies and disasters of all kinds, they kick things up into high gear during Christmas. Food pantries, toy drives, money for the needy, hearts and pocketbooks open up so that everyone can enjoy the happiness of a full belly and a gift under the tree.

Sure there might still be a few scrooges or a Grinch or two, but somehow it’s just easier to laugh them off instead of taking their grouchiness to heart. People are more light-hearted and quicker to laugh. We share Christmas cartoons, emails, jokes, recipes and more. We feast and celebrate for an entire month and grow closer together in the merriment.

Have you been putting off your Christmas fun while you get your shopping and cooking and cleaning done? Well, now is the time to enjoy it! It’s the last weekend before Christmas. Time to have some sugar cookies and watch It’s a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street while you cuddle with your spouse or child. Time to sing some Christmas carols or sit in the quiet of a peaceful night with the glow of the Christmas tree softly lighting the room.

Christmas is too beautiful to pass up. Don’t let the excitement and preparation for the holiday take away your time to enjoy it. Go for a walk or a drive and see all the Christmas lights in your neighborhood. Or have dinner out with friends and take a break from the kitchen. Put the ornaments on the tree, attend church, go ice-skating, build a snowman, bake cookies or whatever else you love to do.

Christmas is a wonderful experience of excitement, laughter, food and family. It is a special time when our abundant blessings are cherished and savored. It only happens one time a year – so live it up! And have a very Merry Christmas! Peace and blessings to all of you.

Inspiration – we all need it!

Monolith by Zest-pk

Inspiration is that creative spark, often a sudden moment of new ideas, insight and motivation that can come from the smallest spark of conversation. It’s that moment when the most mundane or unexpected bit of information ignites a fire of understanding and awareness.

Inspiration can be a joy of discovery. One minute you’re feeling discouraged, down-in-the-dumps and blue. The next you’ve suddenly woken up to the beauty of the trees around you, the sunlight shining brightly down and you feel energetic and hopeful.

Encouragement can come from anywhere - a smile from a child, a flash of color in a woman’s dress, a humorous joke that hits home. The beauty of enlightenment is that is can come from any where at any time. You can look for it, but even if you are not searching it can appear totally at random.

Motivation however, is usually a bit more fleeting. How many times have I been inspired by a wonderful story of a hard-working athlete, a disabled man or a family full of adopted children? In them I recognize how easy my own life is and how much more I could do with it if only I put in more effort.

Over the last year I have found inspiration in the many kindness organizations and happiness students found on the web. Everywhere are people spreading joy, fun, laughter and best of all hope. People who share their time, skills, knowledge and money for the simple pleasure of seeing a smile on the face of a stranger.

My personal wish is that by writing this, I may stimulate a new energy or a brainwave of new ideas in a reader, who will then bring encouragement, hope, and inspiration to someone who needs it. Just think of the delight of knowing that your advice, book, music or gift of listening opened someone’s mind to the plethora of abundance and wonder available in the world. To know you gave someone else hope is one of life’s greatest gifts.

Please feel free to share your own experiences of insight, understanding, and creativity, whether through your own discovery or through someone else. For fun, here are just a few of the things that have inspired me recently; watching a robin listening to the earth to find a meal, seeing the sunlight shine on my cocker-spaniel’s golden fur, a great joke that even made me laugh at death and enjoying my favorite blogs, including Kim and Jason, Urban Monk, Jarkko Laine and many, many more. What has inspired you today?

The Beauty of Silence

Meditation by HaPe_Gera

I have recently rediscovered the full power and beauty of silence. That wonderful, glorious feeling of calm and clarity, brought to your mind in just a few golden moments of total and complete silence. Time to oneself to think, to relax, to heal. No voices talking, no ringing phones, honking horns, no sirens or alarms. Just the gentle sound of nothing at all.

Over the last several months I have been away attending to a family emergency. During that time, noise and chaos were everywhere. The phone rang nonstop with concerned family members, and doctors calling with news of changing conditions. Errands were filled with squealing tires, angry beeping horns and blaring radios.

It all left little to no time for quiet and rest. Worries and household tasks took up the majority of each day. The heavy responsibilities took away all chance for peaceful reflection. There was only the constant demand of just one more thing that needed doing, one last job to do before bed.

In the week since I’ve been home, I’ve gradually begun to slow down and relax. As finances, bills and mail have finally been completed, my thoughts begin to still enough for me to once again think of meditation and relaxation.

Take it from me; there is no bliss in the world like the sound of silence. Just taking a half hour to close the bedroom door, lie on the bed and listen to . . . nothing. Of course as any meditator knows, sounds will still intrude, but how wonderful to hear the birds chirping outside, or the steady, reassuring hum of the refrigerator. How fantastic to listen to the sedate sounds of your beating heart and to notice the feel of the air moving in and out of your lungs.

Silent, tranquil, soothing quiet is a balm to the soul. It uplifts and strengthens the spirit while it soothes and comforts the mind. I heartily recommend taking 15 minutes – try it right now. Let the peaceful feelings of warmth fill your heart and mind, giving you much-need relief. I’m sure you’ll find the time highly worthwhile.

Comforts of Home

Sleeping Bo by Joi

After returning from 3-4 weeks away on a family emergency, I have found a renewed enjoyment of the comforts of home. Having the things you like, just the way you want them is very comforting and satisfying. From your favorite food and drink to the temperature of the house, small joys can add up to big fun and peace of mind.

Whether you like your environment quiet and reflective or enjoy the white-noise chatter of the TV or radio, you can arrange to have the world around you reflect your preferences. Your collections, trinkets and mementos bring to mind happy memories of laughter and fun times spent with loved ones. Adventures both old and new surround you in the pictures and books you love. Colors and textures welcome you. That comfy, cushy couch calls to you to come over and put up your feet.

Being in your own home brings relief and relaxation. No more worrying about breaking someone else’s priceless antique or cherished memory. There is peace of mind in knowing your way around every obstacle of furniture in the room.

One of the joys of blogging is putting into words the thoughts and feelings of everyday life. Time seems to pass so quickly and sorting through these random thoughts and musings help me gain clarity and understanding.

Although I’ve often taken what I think of as an unusual or “extra high” enjoyment of my home sanctuary, it is not until after my recent absence that I realized how special home really is. It’s the one place where your opinions matter more than anyone else’s. You have the ability to make it any way you choose. Only your imagination (and decorating skill) limits your options. What a joy, what a pleasure there is in having such freedom. Making your home a relaxing, inviting retreat is one of the best gifts you can give yourself.

Let out your inner peacock.

El Macho Uploaded on March 12, 2007 by ellhoisa

When I look around at nature, I see so many beautiful sights. The silver drops of rain glistening like diamonds in the sun, the emerald green grass, and the elegant white swan. I’m captivated by the songbirds who sing such beautiful songs, enchanted by the bumbling flight of the butterfly amazed at the magnificent colors of the Peacock.

Nature abounds with beauty, grace and wonder. I think all of us have the same qualities within all of us. We only need to look inside and find what makes us light up with excitement. Can we cook? Do we sing? Are we skilled with a saw and hammer? You don’t even need to quit your day job (though many of us would like to,) in order to share your happiness with others.

Print and frame family photos for a family member who doesn’t have the skill. Use your computer to make personalized greeting cards. Install a light and paint the living room for your mother. Find the skills and abilities you enjoy and use them to make memories with families or friends.

Or volunteer and share your talents with those who need it. Be a mentor for a child, read to the elderly or cook at a soup kitchen. Teach the local shelter dogs some manners, or offer to spice up the web site of your favorite charity. We all have gifts that make us smile and strut, that leave us full of happiness and satisfaction. Find that gift or ability that makes your heart happy and bring a smile to your face.

Though we sometimes forget, we are as much a part of nature as the glamorous orange and black tiger. Some of us shine brightly like a brilliant yellow rose; others are sturdy and strong as a majestic mountain. All the variety and splendor of nature resides in each and every human being.

Look inside and find the deepest and best expression of yourself and share it with everyone around you. Not only will you find joy and fulfillment in connecting to your inner self, your happiness will flow and touch others, expanding the bliss to even more people. What could be better? And to think this entire subject started with a glance at a beautiful little peacock.

Express your love – don’t hold it in!

A message Uploaded on July 15, 2005 by naama

I’ve had many occasions where because I expected something from the other person, maybe attention, praise, or approval, I held back my own expressions of love. Usually I regret my choice not to share. We are all so busy, and we don’t get to visit our friends and family nearly as much as we’d like. Then when we’re together, we squander our chance to share smiles, joy and laughter because our own expectations get in the way.

Expressing your love, freely and openly, without needing approval nor wanting acknowledgment is a source of great joy and satisfaction. Whenever I practice giving out love, regardless of whether the person “deserves” it or not, I invariably feel happy and good. It’s like that saying “Be the change you want in the world.” I’ve hardly ever regretted sharing a hug, a kind word, a helping hand or encouragement.

I think the worst reaction I may have gotten was a person who was grumpy to begin with that stayed grouchy even after a hug or offer of assistance. But I can’t remember being rejected outright. Even the most bad-tempered person will grudgingly accept a hug, an offer for dinner or thank you for a kindness. Several times I’ve had these people come to me later and thank me profusely while apologizing for their behavior.

I don’t practice this attitude as much as I would like. I get annoyed, irritated and frustrated by problems in my day. I hurry and scurry to work, the store and home again; totally ignoring the chance to smile at a cashier, joke with my co-worker or hug my spouse. Often I want someone else to start the process of giving love, not recognizing that by starting it myself I create that beautiful ripple effect.

I love blogging, because by writing these ideas for fun, laughter and more enjoyment in your life, I remind myself to do the same in mine. To keep the idea alive, here are some quick ways to show your love:

1. Do a chore like washing the dishes or taking out the trash before your spouse has a chance to do it.
2. Smile at other drivers, your bank teller or your boss.
3. When you visit family, be the first to give a huge hug.
4. Share a funny commercial or joke with a coworker.
5. Take your elderly parent to the zoo, out to dinner or for a drive in the country.
6. Write a loving letter to a friend or family member at least once a year.
7. Buy movie tickets for a long-distance friend; go to the movie on the same day, then call or email to compare notes.
8. Buy flowers on unexpected occasions like April Fools Day or Labor Day. Send it to someone who needs cheering up.

Happiness is simple.

At least it can be. When we stop wanting more than we have. When we take time to appreciate the beauty that surrounds us. When we slow down enough to enjoy our family, work, and home. That’s when happiness becomes simple.

Here a few simple joys:

1. A hot bowl of chili on a cold night.
2. Sharing pictures with family and friends.
3. Relaxing on a porch swing at the end of a hard day.
4. Finishing a deadline.
5. The crunching of leaves as you walk through the woods.
6. Laughing with your children.
7. A phone call from a friend.
8. Stargazing.
9. Puppy kisses.
10. A big bear-hug.

Why is happiness such hard work?

If you’re anything like me, you like being happy and you hate hard work. So isn’t it ironic that being happy often takes a lot of work? For instance I love blogging, but it takes time to come up with a good idea, research relevant material and write it up for all of you. But once I’ve done all that, I get an immense surge of happiness when just one person leaves me a positive comment. Here are a few more examples:

1. You enjoy being fit and in shape. You find it hard to make time to exercise every day and you already have five things on your to-do list.
2. You are happy when you cook healthy meals. Finding good recipes and shopping for good quality food takes planning and energy.
3. You love scrapbooks and photo albums. Family members don’t like their pictures taken and you have to organize everything, as well as print, label and file the pictures.
4. Being a pet owner brings you joy. Feeding, grooming, walking, brushing and socializing your pet is time consuming.
5. Reading is your favorite hobby. Your kids need help with homework, there are errands to run, and the bills need to be done.

These were just a few ideas off the top of my head. All of them seemed to involve time – one commodity most of us never have enough of. Time management is hard concept for many of us to manage. Yet even when you’re tired or when you run short on time, doing these things that make you happy brings a sense of satisfaction – even when it causes temporary hardships.

Of course there are always more than 5 things that really make us happy. (If there aren’t you better get a piece of paper and get busy trying to figure out what you enjoy!) Pick you’re top 5 things and make sure to put aside an hour a day to do as many as you can. It doesn’t have to be 60 minutes in a row, 15 minutes of exercise, 30 minutes for dinner, 5 for the dog, 10 for the pictures, etc. Just make sure to enjoy the process. If you’re anything like me, your likes and dislikes may change before you reach your goal – that’s okay as long as you take some time to have fun.