Okay, who doesn’t want to be happier? I mean, happiness is really the ultimate goal, right? Well, the cool thing is that you’re in complete control of your happiness and you can use the list below to live a happier life today!

Give ‘em a try and make this week your happiest week yet! 🙂

1. Move your body. I know that I’ve said this one a million times, but it really does boost your mood and lift your spirits! Exercising releases endorphins and man, those endorphins can do wonders! Even if you’re short on time, just get your body moving for the short amount of time you do have. Trust me, you’ll be glad you did. Moving your body creates so much happiness, clarity and creativity. 

2. Change your thoughts. Your thoughts control your choices, which ultimately shape your life. If you want to control things in your life, start with your mind. Work on noticing the thoughts that creep up in your mind throughout the day. Are they happy, productive and useful thoughts? Or are they self-deprecating and horribly negative thoughts? Learn to notice negative thought patterns and replace them with happy, more positive ones. What you tell yourself has a massive effect on how you feel.

3. Get your sleep. This one seems a little out of place maybe, but it really is SO important. Sleep is HUGE guys! Like, for real. For a variety of reasons, but even your happiness is on that list! Sleep-deprivation actually has a huge effect on the way that outside information is processed. Sleep-deprived people have a hard time recalling pleasant memories, but have no problem recalling sad memories. In an experiment by Walker, sleep-deprived college students tried to memorize a list of words. They could remember 81% of the words with a negative connotation, like “cancer.” But they could remember only 31% of the words with a positive or neutral connotation, like “sunshine” or “basket.”

4. Gratitude practice. Having a gratitude practice makes a world of difference. You really get to see how much you actually have to be grateful for and how amazing life really is! The practice can be anything you want it to be, just find some time to get grateful for the things in your life. Sometimes I do mine in my head as I’m walking my dog, Kandi, in the morning and I just list all of the things I can think of that I’m so grateful to have. Other times, I sit down and physically write a list. I have a space in the back of my journal just for this practice. If I’m having a hard time getting my mind in the right place, I opt for physically writing it down.

5. Meditate. If you’re anything like me, this sounded totally foreign and pretty hippie-dippie to me when I first head it. Just being honest. It was so new to me and I kind of blew it off as not being something I needed. Lemme just tell you…I was totally wrong! I kept hearing so many extremely successful people talk about their meditation practices and I decided to give it a try. Wow, game changer. I won’t lie and say that I’m super good at it or that I look forward to it each day, but I know the change I feel when I do it and so it’s something I’ve included in my daily practices. If you’re new to it like I was and don’t really know where to start, check out Headspace. This is what I use and I love it! It takes the thinking out of it and really guides you through the process.

  6. Get outside. How good do you feel when you’re outside? I know that not everyone lives in weather where being outside is pratical all year but even a short time outside can boost our mood. One study found that spending 20 minutes outside in good weather not only boosted positive mood, but broadened thinking and improved working memory…

7. Spend time with friends & family. This is what really matters and it can definitely lift your spirits. Make time to spend with people you love. Especially if you’re feeling down, seeing a loved one can really help lift you up again. If you can’t see a friend of family at the very moment, try giving them a call!

8. Help others. Helping others is an amazing way to give back, but have you ever noticed how YOU feel too when you do? How good does it feel to help someone else? When’s the last time you helped someone else? Get out and be helpful! 🙂

9. Make time for fun. This might sound obvious, but it’s easy to forget and can even feel counterintuitive when you’re crazy busy. When you’re stressed out and feeling like there’s no time, this is usually when you need fun the most. All work and no play makes for a big ‘ole grump! Make sure that you’re including time for fun each week. Do something for no reason other than that you truly enjoy it.

10. Smile! Ah this is an easy one, but still regularly forgotten. Just the act of smiling alone can seriously change your mood. Your body language has a huge effect on your mood. There’s a huge difference in body language between a happy and sad person. If you’re not feeling it at first, just put on a big smile and fake it ‘til you make it! Just keep smiling! 😀

I hope these tips help to keep you happy and smiling!

Here’s to an awesomely happy week!

Until next time,

Xoxo

Ashley