Boosting Your Success with Five Easy Happiness Tips

What would it mean to you to achieve greater success? Studies on happiness and success reported by the Psychological Bulletin of the American Psychological Association state that “happiness contributes towards reinforcing positive emotions, which also motivates people to undertake new goals and succeed at them.” nnDr. Sonja Lyubomirsky of the University of California and colleagues studied over 275,000 people. Their findings showed that “chronically happy people are in general more successful across many life domains than less happy people.”nnOn the converse side, people who stay in jobs or relationships in which they are chronically unhappy miss out on the joy life has to offer and are at greater risk of chronic diseases.nnIt is important to be clear on exactly what happiness means to you. When happiness is some nebulous goal to be achieved “someday,” then by definition, you do not have it now. Happiness is not some ultimate goal; it is a moment-to-moment choice. As Abraham Lincoln said, “Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” nnAbe was not too far off from the truth, but there is another important puzzle piece: brain chemistry. Brain cells communicate feeling states with each other through a complex biochemical process using neurotransmitters—little chemical messengers. nThe brain makes a variety of neurotransmitters responsible for our emotions—Dr. Candace Pert, in her book Molecules of Emotion, states, “...not only the familiar feelings of anger, fear, sadness and joy; but also spiritual inspiration, awe, bliss, and other states of consciousness.” More recent studies observe that neurotransmitters may actually be somewhat addictive. In other words, you may find yourself becoming angry regularly because you actually have an internal addiction to the neurotransmitter involved with the feeling of anger. The more you get angry, the more you get angry, and the more neurons get involved in that vicious cycle of anger to form what is called a “neural net.”nnThe good news is that this process can be reversed. Through choosing happiness instead of anger, the neural net can be dismantled over time, and you can “train” yourself to be happy more of the time!nnSo how do we begin to experience more happiness? As simplistic as it seems, actually becoming conscious of and logging when we really and truly are happy is a basic beginning. You may be fooling yourself in thinking that you are not happy because you have not achieved some goal or that you do not live in some special home you want. But perhaps the truth is that you are actually pretty happy with your life overall. Your gut will tell you, but if you are really not sure, you may want to begin with this simple happiness gauge exercise.nn(Note: While your schedule may not follow the below example, do your best to correlate these sections to your life/work schedule.) Give yourself a “Y” for yes or an “N” for no in each of the following parts of a typical day, during which you usually experience contentment or downright happiness:nnUpon arising and getting ready for the day: ___nDuring breakfast: ___nCommuting to work: ___nThe morning hours: ___nLunchtime: ___nThe afternoon hours: ___nCommuting home: ___nDinner: ___nEarly evening activities: ___nLater evening activities and getting ready for sleep: ___nnHow did you score? If you put a “Y” next to nine or more of the parts of your day above, congratulations! You may still benefit from the basic tips below. If you scored lower, remember that happiness is something that is really a choice, and it can be practiced. Here, below, are some key tips to help you amp up your share.nnLive by your definition of happiness and success. Many people feel an ongoing sense of dissatisfaction with their lives or businesses because they are using someone else’s “happiness measuring stick.” Comparing your life and achievements to those of others and using their criteria rather than yours is a surefire way to lose the happiness game. nnStrategy: You have heard of a rule book for games. How about putting together your own little book of rules for life—criteria for happiness and success? Having it written down makes it much easier to hold your own when others impose onto you their ideas about what you should or should not be doing.nnBecome a Pollyanna. Pollyanna, contrary to popular opinion, was not teaching denial or pie in the sky positive thinking. Rather, she perfected a mind-set of learned optimism and of seeing the glass “half full.” Pollyanna’s “Glad Game” turned around an entire town from being gloomy and pessimistic to being a happy, joyful place. nnStrategy: No matter what life hands you, see how well you can make lemonade out of lemons. Not only will your sunny outlook help you be happier more of the time, but also, your “vibes” will positively affect those around you. If you are single, keeping a sunny disposition will make your “vibe” much more attractive. People like to be around upbeat people who make them feel good. nnIf you are in sales or are looking to climb a success ladder, you will be much more attractive to your ideal employer or ideal customer if your attitude is obviously an optimistic and happy one.nnHave better relationships by living from both head and heart. Being too rigid and intellectual can really wreck the relationship “happiness quotient.” The people in your life, just like you, want to hear expressed appreciation and be given more understanding. Sadly, it seems much easier in our society for people to express disappointment, criticism, and negative observations than it does the positive ones. nnStrategy: Speak words of encouragement and appreciation freely. Also, ask for acknowledgment when you need it. When you give and take freely of appreciation, understanding, and praise, relationships are bound to flourish; after all, success in almost any endeavor is based on having good relationships.nnStay in the here and now. Most frequently, people think, “When I achieve this goal, I will finally be happy.” Life is not “then.” Life is right now! Future happiness is created by the cumulative now experiences of happiness.nnStrategy: Make a habit of slowing things down. Savor those good people, experiences, and feelings in the very moment you are experiencing them. While you are experiencing and noticing them, inwardly say a thought of gratitude that you have this person, job, experience, feeling, or talent.nnAt the end of the day, review. If you have really practiced this “here and now happiness,” the overall feeling about your day will be a good one. Eventually, you will find the percentage of happiness that consumes the majority of your days, weeks, months, and years increases measurably.nnQuiet your negative self-talk. Many people are completely unaware of the numerous negative things they say to themselves throughout the day. Like criticism of others, negative self-talk never helped anyone perform better. nnStrategy: Become your own detective. Carry a little notebook around with you, and whenever you are aware of some negative thoughts running through your mind, write them down. Then consciously and deliberately refute the negative thought with some positive observations. nnThink of any and all good things you can to see things in a positive light. Here, again, because you are focusing on the positive, your “vibes” will be good ones, and people will like being around you. In fact, they will begin to think and feel about you the way you do. It is much easier to be successful when people like being around you!nnThese are just a few ways you can enhance the quality of your happiness experience and your life. Get creative, and begin thinking of your own solutions! They will pay big dividends.nnn** This article is one of 101 great articles that were published in 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life. To get complete details on “101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life”, visit http://www.selfgrowth.com/greatways3.html nn