BE HAPPIER!

Happiness does have a pretty important role in our lives, and it can have a huge impact on the way we live our lives. It appears that life satisfaction, purpose and well-being can be linked with happiness, but happiness is not necessarily the overriding goal for everyone in life.

Manage your stress levels

If you have a lot of stress in your life, find ways to reduce it, by applying time-management techniques. Refer to a previous article on this subject-matter for the techniques.

Introduce regular exercise and do your daily routine at set times. These are positive changes. Taking control of your time in this way can effectively reduce stress.

If you have feelings of anxiety along with your stress, deep breathing techniques can help. Refer to a previous article on this subject-matter for the techniques.

Enjoy yourself

Doing things that you enjoy is good for your emotional well-being.

Simple activities like watching sports with a friend, having a soak in the bath or meeting up with friends for coffee can all improve your day.

Doing something you are good at, such as cooking or dancing, is a good way to enjoy yourself and have a sense of achievement.

Try to avoid things that seem enjoyable at the time but make you feel worse afterwards, such as drinking too much alcohol or eating junk food.

Boost your self-esteem

Self-esteem is the way you feel about yourself.

The best way to improve your self-esteem is to treat yourself as you would treat a valued friend, in a positive but honest way.

Notice when you are putting yourself down, such as thinking, "You are so stupid for not getting that job", and instead think, "Would I say that to my best friend?". You probably would not.

Tell yourself something positive instead, such as: "You are a very bright person, you will get the next job".

Have a healthy lifestyle

Limit your alcohol intake

When times are hard, it is tempting to drink alcohol because it temporarily "numbs" painful feelings.

But it can exaggerate some feelings and make you feel angry or aggressive. It can also make you feel more depressed.

Choose a well-balanced diet

Making healthy choices about your diet can make you feel emotionally stronger. You are doing something positive for yourself, which lifts your self-esteem.

A good diet helps your brain and body work efficiently, too. Aim to have a balanced diet that includes all the main food groups.

Do some exercise

Even moderate exercise releases chemicals in your brain that lift your mood.

It can help you sleep better, have more energy and keep your heart healthy.

Choose an exercise that you enjoy. If it helps, do it with a friend or listen to music. Adults should aim for 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercises a week.

Get enough sleep

Around 7 to 8 hours is the average amount of sleep an adult needs for their body and mind to be fully rested.

Writing a "to do" list for the next day before bed can organize your thoughts and clear your mind of any distractions.

Talk and share

Communication is important, whether it is with a friend, a family member or a counselor. 

Talking things through helps you to release tension, rather than keeping it inside. It helps strengthen your relationships and connect with people.

Lots of people find talking to a counselor about things that are troubling them very helpful.

Build your resilience

Resilience is what allows you to cope with the ups and downs in life.

Making something worthwhile out of painful times helps your resilience grow.

Starting a support group to help others, or making something creative out of bad experiences, for example, by writing, painting or singing, can help you express pain and get through hard times.

Find your purpose

​We all want to feel like we made some sort of positive impact in this world, but sometimes we are uncertain of the type of impact we want to make.

Explore what happiness means to you

Know what happiness means to you, what it looks like, and what it feels like - will help you to find happiness more easily.

Communicate kindly

When we are kind to others, we feel better about ourselves. We can do nice things for others, be empathetic, or we can just treat each other with respect, communicating rather than assuming the worst.

Take breaks from social media

Facebook tends to have a negative effect on our happiness. By choosing to take breaks from Facebook - or changing the way we use the social media - we can boost our happiness.

Pay attention to the good

By paying attention to the good, we can rise above it and be more resilient. When you find the good, savor the moment, and bring it with you to maintain happiness even during the hard times.

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