Be Uplifted, FIlled with Joy

10 Things to Do to Make You Happy Now

Not happy with how things are going in your life?  Looking for ways to spice up your dull and boring life?  The following list are things people have done and are doing to enhance their personalities and live the kind of life that makes them happy.

1) Seek adventure.  Thrill-seekers thrive on having a life that is exciting.  Some will plan what their next adventure will be while others will just spontaneously go out and do whatever they feel like doing at that moment.  Do what you always wanted to do and bring a camera along with you so that you will be able to reflect on the memory later that made you happy.

2) Visit a place without planning it.  As mentioned above, some thrill seekers enjoy spontaneity.  Take a drive down a road you have never driven, walk down a path you never trod and see a place you never visited.

3) Make plans to visit old friends.  Too many promises of “will do lunch”?  Time to set a date, time, and location between friends to catch up on one another’s lives.

4) Write a letter.  It doesn’t matter if the receiver is friend or family member, sometimes it is nice to express how you feel and tell stories about your life through the written word.  Who knows, this may be just the release you need to enhance your thoughts of happiness while making someone else happy to hear from you.

5) Purchase or create a gift for someone.  When you shop for someone other than yourself, you are creating a positive energy that will boomerang back to you in the future.   Helping someone else achieve happiness is key to finding your own happiness.  Subconsciously, you will find yourself desiring more ways to make yourself and others happy.

6) Take the bus around town.  Too often drivers miss out on the opportunities to really enjoy the environment they live in because they are too busy focusing on drivers around them.  Take some of the pressure off yourself and experience the world from a different perspective.  You will be surprised at all of the places you never noticed while driving.  You may find a place to visit that brings a smile on your face.

7) Research local colleges for classes you might enjoy.  Sometimes just reading about something new can take your mind off your problems.  Focus on learning about something that pleases you.

8) Find a new job/career.  Many people are not happy in their jobs.  While cost of living increases, their checks aren’t that is enough to make anyone unhappy.  You may be able to enhance your mood if you research what companies are paying more than the one you are with for the same amount of work or less.  Less stress, more happiness!

9) End relationships that are energy stealers.  Whether it is a friend who is a mooch or a girlfriend who takes up all your time, make a decision whether or not you want to keep this person around.  You may have family members who are also energy stealers, if so lessen the amount of time you spend with them.

10) Relocate.  Sometimes people tend to become unhappy when they realize the place they live isn’t all that it was cracked up to be.  If you find that your apartment, home, or neighborhood is giving you more tears, then smiles make every effort to move.  Your mind, body, and spirit will thank you later!

Nicholl McGuire is the author of What Else Can I Do on the Internet?

Do You Really Want to Be Happy?

How to Fill Your Home with Happiness

Happiness at home doesn’t come from pretty pictures, a comfortable recliner, and a big screen TV, but happiness comes from within the mind, body, and spirit. How does one find joy in a home filled with challenges, anger, and resentment? If you have asked this question, then it is you that will be responsible for starting the process of creating contentment in your own home, here’s how.

Encourage and inspire those in your home starting with the person who is the most challenging. Some ways to do this include: unexpectedly bringing food from a favorite restaurant home while letting everyone know you were thinking of them, leaving a Thinking of You card in the bathroom for a partner, arranging some separate time for each of your children, or rewarding the family when they help with chores.

Whether you are spiritual, religious or otherwise, take some quiet time for yourself either when you first wake up or just before you go to bed to talk about the things that ail you about the most challenging person in your family. Sincerely ask God for guidance then be still for awhile until some thoughts come to mind on how to deal with him or her. You may not have any idea at that moment, but later something may come to mind.

Be prepared for negativity when it comes. The human spirit is powerful and it will seem as if this person or the people you are praying for will know you are doing something behind the scenes to promote change. They may act worse, but hold on because this is your sign that change is not that far away, so keep on praying.

Watch how you talk to the people in your family, life is too short! Ask rather than command. Speak softly more than raising your voice. Think about what you are going to say before you say it. Be slow to place blame or find fault.

If money won’t allow for you to keep up with the others, then stop trying. You won’t be able to get everything for everyone so eliminate some of your worries and stick to the priorities. List all your family's wants on a bulletin board. You may include photos or newspaper and magazine clippings. If the family really wants them, then they will make the effort to make them happen from selling or giving some things away to recycling plastic to save money.

Stop thinking about what could have been. The past is the past. Be in the present and take control over the things you can control like your own happiness. The only way you can do that is if you start by looking outside yourself and appreciating those around you.

Don’t try to be something you’re not. Hypocrites are unhappy people. They are too busy rushing to become something that they are not equipped to be. Start every project, every to do list, every self-help task, and every opportunity to forgive one step at a time. People don’t suddenly have a close relationship with God, lose weight, become a great mom, get a job, win a sweepstakes, or do anything and receive the fame and fortune. It all takes a lot of time and dedication! So ignore the critics and do what you can today!