HAPPINESS
What causes happiness? Can we create happiness and if so, how? For over thirty years, researchers have
been testing people and running experiments with people, searching for answers to these questions. The results are
coming in and it is good news. There really are some ways of thinking and behaving a person can use if they want to
experience more happiness in life.
1. CULTIVATE AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE. Yup. Keep a gratitude journal. Share your gratitude
with others. Give yourself a chance to re-experience what you are grateful for. “It’s not happiness that makes us
grateful. It’s gratefulness that makes us happy.” (David Stendl-Rast)
2. PERFORM RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS. No kidding. The research is definitive on this one.
Take twenty dollars. Spend it on yourself. Next, take twenty dollars. Spend it on someone else.
Which makes you happier? Try it yourself. My personal favorite? Give the cashier at Kroger ten dollars to
help pay for the purchases of the person behind me in line. Walk away.
3. BE A GOOD INFLUENCE. Take back your personal power. Notice how you can influence situations and
people in a positive way by being friendly, curious, funny or patient. Remember, you are responsible for the energy you bring into the room.
4. TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOUR BODY. We only get one and it’s guaranteed to wear out the longer we
live. Like any vehicle, good maintenance and repair lead to smoother running and longer life. Most Americans need
to sleep more (7 to 10 hours/day) and move around more (everything counts). Improve these two behaviors and your
sense of wellbeing will usually improve, too.
Since this is such a meaningful topic, I will write more about it next month. The bottom line is we do not
have to search for happiness, we can create it for ourselves.
