8 Things Happy People Do Differently
Wouldn’t it be great to be happy all the time? I’d love to get rid of those dark moments. With so many people suffering from anxiety, stress, depressed moods and more, we need to find natural solutions.
Over the last few years, as I’ve gone about my life, I’ve wondered what happy people do differently. This list isn’t conclusive, it’s not backed by any scientific data, it’s what my gut tells me in the pursuit of happiness as a student of life.
#1 Absolute Forgiveness
Happy people forgive. They move forward. Storing up bitterness, anger and resentment chips away at your happiness stockpile. Elyse recently posted about how happy people are thankful, but they also forgive. Holding on to issues inevitably causes rumination and removes the possibility of total peace and completeness. Sometimes you might feel you’re not ready to forgive, that the anger still burns deep. But, the more you can ease into that forgiveness and move forward, setting the issue aside and forgiving, the more you can move on with your life and smile.
#2 Comparison Abstention
Happy people don’t compare. They don’t look at someone skinny and decide that they’re too fat. They don’t look at someone with an expensive car and decide that they’re too poor. They don’t look at people that they believe they’re ‘better’ than and feel a sense of superiority. They look at people for who they are and they look at themselves in the same way. Happy people have made their own choices along the way and are content with them. Happy people don’t just stay away from comparison, they have no need for it in their life.
#3 Total Empathy
Happy people are empathetic. They can relate. They understand. Happy people know that we can’t all be at our happiest 100% of the time. When they are there for others, when they empathise, they provide that very much needed support. In doing so, a multitude of endorphins are released as they help others, making them feel happier. And in doing so, they learn.
#4 Self-Improvement
Happy people seek self improvement. Happy people learn. They use the Knowledge Protocol – something I outline in my book but essentially it’s knowing how much you don’t know. They have a thirst for knowledge, a thirst for self-improvement. They want to be better. When they learn, they challenge themselves, they find out more about themselves and they create new adventures.
#5 Choose Yourself
Happy people choose themselves. Just like the title of James Altucher’s bestselling book, Choose Yourself, happy people make their own choices and choose to do so. They choose to make the choices that they want to make. They choose to do what they want to do. This isn’t selfish, this is honest. They’re honest with themselves. Happy people build themselves up by choosing themselves and, in doing so, add value back to others.
#6 Letting Go
Happy people let go. In a similar vein to forgiveness, they let go of their baggage and they move on. They don’t hold on but let the stress slide off their shoulders as they move forward. While happy people strive for self-improvement, they leave their baggage at the front door and enjoy the moment.
#7 Being Present
Happy people are present. Happy people saviour the moment. They know that the past is the past and the future is the future. Sure, they need to spend time considering both, but they also treasure the very moment that they are in, inhaling the smells that surround them, gazing at the beauty in front of them, hearing the birds chirping, tasting the exquisite cuisine and feeling the textures with their finger tips. They use all their senses to the full and experience what it is truly like to live in the moment.
#8 Care For Yourself
Happy people care about themselves. They know that they need to stay fit. That’s mentally fit and physically fit. #4 was about self-improvement – working on the mental game. There are many more avenues to take towards that. And there’s also the physical side. Happy people know that staying fit is important – exercise raises your happiness levels – but they go a step further in looking after themselves. Happy people see their doctor and get medical check ups. They recognise that what they eat is the fuel that they’re putting into their body – they don’t expect to get results if they don’t fuel their body correctly. Happy people take care of themselves.
You
What makes you happy? What’s not on this list that you find makes you happy?
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Main image by Farrukh.
