6 Habits of Happy People

In the life of a happy person has a simple agenda that can be worked into every schedule…

Morning: Wake up and give thanks.  Set aside time as little as 5 minutes for devotion or meditation.  This ensures the day is spiritually covered and you can proceed confidently knowing your steps are ordered throughout the day.

• Eat a breakfast filled with color and life (fruits and vegetables). Avoid processed foods throughout the day.

Afternoon: Encourage others and Laugh!  Tell a joke. Call your funniest friend.  Practice listing what is bothering you and find the lighter side.  Uncover hidden blessings, and extend someone a kindness.

• Eat a lunch filled with mostly Vegetables and foods that make you lethargic for the rest of the day.  Avoid sugar and empty carbs that sap your give energy after the sugar crash.

Evening: Review your day and recall where you have been generous.  Even if you missed that opportunity, pray for your loved ones, your coworkers and to all of the world.  A generous spirit does not cost a thing.

• Eat a well-balanced dinner with lean protein. Turn off electronics and go to bed early enough to get 8 hours of sleep.

Repeat every day and notice how joy feels.  It's subtle, it's calm and soft and it makes for a fulfilling life.  Be happy. Here are the 6 habits that make this simple agenda so powerfully happy!

1. Laughter & Levity

Happy people laugh throughout the day.  They laugh at themselves and at situations that may not seem funny to others.  There is always a bright side, an ironic, side to everything. Every situation can be perceived from darkness (complaining), or from lightness (encouragement).  Like attracts like, so choose levity. A smile and then laughter soon follow. I recently had a day when everything went sideways (see? I didn’t say wrong). My son was in the hospital, my husband’s flight was canceled, my skin was breaking in a terrible rash.  We found the levity in every situation. My son and I spent quality time telling stories and he introduced me to anime troubleshooting visits with the doctors. My husband was trying to get to us and knows that flying through Philadelphia is always risky, so when the flight was canceled for “mechanical reasons” we shook our heads and laughed.  He called it! And as for the rash, when I thought about what my son was going through, it wasn’t all that bad.

2. Spend time on Internal, not External Values

Morals or Money? Commercialism, the news cycle, and social media have us rapt, constantly checking our phones and laptops.  We want to know what is someone else doing and even what are they wearing while they are doing it. What is truly important?  Happy people focus on internal values on goodness and creativity and less on materialism and competition. Unhappy people compare themselves to others and feel bad. Stop comparing.  Go within. Happy people recognize everything you need is already within you.

3. Stillness & Devotion: A Spiritual Practice

Take time to be alone with your higher power.  Meditation reduces stress and is the most effective practice to find and stay aligned with your higher purpose.   This is not just a physiological exercise used to calm down hyper children and disgruntled employees. When used as a spiritual practice to find your center and higher purpose, it has supernatural abilities to bring inner peace and wellbeing.  Happy people gain the confidence and clarity to find the lighter side and contentment in every situation. Powerful.

4. Mindful Eating

Eat too much of the wrong things and you become lethargic or sick.  Eat too much of the right things and…well, there’s no such thing. You can not eat too much of the right things.  Eating well produces health and vitality and a positive outlook.  Energy spikes and energy dips are the results of the foods you eat.   The immediate gratification of continual overeating is a sign that you’re eating your feelings.  It’s a short term happy game. Because chronic diseases are the result of poor diets, it is a fatal game.  Happy people recognize the power of food as medicine and as a blessing. Infinite factors go into bringing each bite to your mouth.  Since we all have to eat to live, this practice keeps you energetic. This is the long game.

5. Generosity

A genuine practice of giving contains other supernatural byproducts.  Included in generosity is compassion, kindness, and gratitude. Because of this, generosity is a joy multiplier.  People who give their time and resources with a genuine interest in others always are rewarded with a sense of wellbeing.  Make it tangible. Give physically when you can. A note, a kind word, a couple of dollars in the cup of someone in immediate need.  It is a great feeling to help, to be helped and even to watch others receive help. There is a chemical in our body that is released with a sense of contentment and satisfaction. Endorphins, yessss!

6. Rest

Get a good night's sleep.  Happy people sleep well and wake up refreshed.  Largely it’s because the first 5 habits attract sleep naturally.  The sense of levity and walking in purpose, a healthy body, and a clear and content mind are the ingredients for a restful night's sleep.  Develop and nighttime routine to unwind and gift yourself 7-8 to sleep. Your body needs that time to reinvigorate for the next day ahead.

Add these habits to your daily routine and you will not just find happiness, but joy.  Your mind will be clearer, your body stronger, and your spirit uplifted. And one by one, we make the world a happy place to live.

Love & Light,

TK