Here are the 15 best ways to choose happiness
1. Throw the ‘Pretending Mask’ away. Do yourself this wonderful favor.
So, how to choose happiness? Where to Start?
Choose ‘You.’
Be ’You.’
Being honest with yourself and expressing your honest self is the best way to choose happiness in life.
Be the 'honest you.'
We pretend. We change ourselves. We wear a fake mask, and we hide our true nature so that people will like us and put us in their circle.
We do this, right?
Let’s stop it.
What if someone you thought was a good friend turned out to be a ‘pretending person’ all this time? How will you feel?
You feel hurtful, right?
Let’s not make the same mistake. Let’s not fake who we are.
You don’t have to be perfect. You just don’t have to fake everything. That’s it.
Being ‘You’ is freedom and true happiness.
2. Design your life on your terms
Comparison is a happiness killer. Especially with life, don’t compare and don’t bring someone else’s design into your life.
Design everything about you on your ‘terms.’ It will help you choose happiness despite challenges coming your way.
Want to study what you like? Then pursue it. Even if the roads get difficult, you can easily travel because you are doing what you like. If you pick a study that everyone says is good, but you don’t like it, then you will become unhappy at one point.
You know what you want in life more than anyone else. So decide your life based on your terms.
3. Be harmonizing
Thomas Merton rightly said, “Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm, and harmony.”
Life is not a race. Life is more like a harmonious travel wherein we combine all the good things and learn to overcome the bad things.
So, build a balance that takes success and failure the same.
Channel all your emotions constructively.
Go with the flow.
Things you like to do, and goals you like to pursue add rhythm to your life.
Take nothing (good or bad) to an extreme. It disturbs life’s harmony.
4. Happiness is a Travel
“Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling.” – Margaret Lee Runbeck
Imagine your life as a long highway.
Your first paycheck, getting your dream job, starting your business, buying things you like, spending time with your family, spending money on your loved ones, having a cheat day and eating all you like, etc. are like little milestones and signboards on the highway.
Can you get the picture now?
Happiness is these little milestones and signboards you see on your highway. Enjoy all of them. And be excited and hopeful for the rest of the milestones and signboards waiting for you.
5. You have the right to be happy.
We all make mistakes. We take terrible calls. We might hurt people. We might make poor judgments.
We are all prone to imperfections and mistakes. That doesn’t make us bad. That doesn’t mean we have to stay miserable.
You have the right to be happy.
✥ Learn your lesson. Don’t repeat the mistake.
✥ Don’t let your past mistakes haunt you all your life. Make peace with it. And choose happiness again.
✥ Don’t enclose yourself in a shell because you made some mistakes in the past.
6. Love yourself
When you accept yourself and love yourself, your mind receives more happiness.
Robert Holden, the author of the book “Happiness Now! Timeless wisdom for feeling good FAST” says, “You enjoy as much happiness as you believe you’re worthy of.”
Embrace everything about you. Embrace your imperfections. Love yourself.
You are a piece of sunshine put in this world. Just shine with a “choose happiness” sign in your hand. Don’t worry about the rest.
7. Don’t sail your ship to the past.
Wondered what’s the best actionable way to choose happiness?
Come to the present. Steer your ship ‘here,’ the present.
Worrying about your past mistakes, experiences, or bad calls in life is like carrying unwanted baggage. You got your lesson, right? Then come out of it.
Also, scientifically, by holding on to negative emotions like unwillingness to forgive, need for revenge, showing/spewing hatred, jealousy, anger, etc., you weaken your physical and mental health. You are putting your entire system in a stress mode.
Make peace with your past. Forgive. Forget. What’s done is done. Live the moment.
Your present is where your happiness is. Take it in your hand.
8. Happiness is a choice. Always go for it.
“Happiness is a choice. Not a result. Nothing will make you happy until you choose to be happy. No person will make you happy unless you decide to be happy. Your happiness will not come to you. It can only come from you” – Ralph Marston.
If you decide to stay unhappy, even the world’s happiest things will not make you happy.
But,
If you decide to be happy, no one or nothing can make you unhappy. Not even the entire world.
We cannot always stop the troubles coming our way. Life will happen to us all. The best thing we can do here is we can choose to be happy. We can choose to live in a peaceful and hopeful state of mind.
9. You need good people.
Here’s a fact we can see around us.
Happiness is transmittable. That’s why; good people can make you feel light, worthy, and positive.
The ones who spew negativity, well, they make everything miserable, doubtful, and unworthy. Get rid of them. Earn good people in life.
10. Give back. It’s happiness.
Happiness increases ten old when you ‘Give.’
Do what you can. When you see someone you know struggling, extend your help without an invitation.
11. Look beyond imperfections
When you expect more; when you expect perfection, you will end up feeling unhappy. You cannot expect everything to go as you plan. You cannot expect people around you to sync with your rhythm.
Try to look beyond imperfections. When you look past all the imperfections, you can find the beautiful side of people around you.
Stop ‘being perfect’ all the time. Just get out there and be happy. The more you seek perfection, the more disappointment you get.
12. Don’t be uptight.
You can’t control everything and everyone. Most of the time, we lose our happiness because of this.
Be at ease, alright! Life is not an F1 race track to stay tight all the time.
✥ Socialize with people.
✥ Be positive.
✥ Enjoy spending time with your friends and loved ones.
✥ Don’t keep thinking about what’s waiting to be done. Focus on the present.
✥ Smile. Laugh your heart out.
✥ Enjoy your loneliness.
✥ Go easy with life.
✥ Enjoy simple moments that come your way. You might not get them back.
✥ Appreciate people.
✥ Encourage people.
✥ Be happy for others.
13. Maintain a good attitude
Hope for the best. Maintain an attitude that brings the best of you and not the worst from you.
Do positive affirmations every day like “Hey, you got this,” “make count today,” “It’s going to be good.”
Start your day in a hopeful mode that everything’s going to be okay.
14. Your health is your happiness.
Take care of your health.
Gradually, build habits, routines, and practices that enhance your physical and mental wellbeing.
To choose happiness, start by giving priority to your health. Among the 15 ways to choose happiness, I would recommend starting with this point first.
15. Be Honest
Being honest brings all the right things to you in life.
Honesty is the first form of truth. You bring it in your life, and you bring happiness, freedom, and a high spirit.
Be honest with you. Be honest with the people around you.