4 Tips to Live a Happier Life

How to be happy in life

How happy are you currently, on a scale from 1 to 10, and 10 being extremely happy? You see, most people want to be happier! They find many reasons as to why they are unhappy and often blame outside sources for their unhappiness. Before we get started, I need to debunk two myths about happiness. First, nobody will always be happy, we are all human and we have ups and downs. However how long we choose to live in those downs is where we can improve. Second, long term happiness is not something that happens to us, only forms of satisfaction can occur. This is because happiness comes from within, while satisfaction can be achieved through external sources (such as money relationships, etc). After you read this article you will have a better understanding as to why these two myths are in fact inaccurate beliefs. You will then be able to consistently work on becoming a happier person through recognizing that you have more control than often believed over the emotions you experience in various situations. Let's get started!

1- Watch the meaning you give

I want you to think of a time where you felt some strong emotions toward someone, or a specific situation. What made you feel that way? What makes us, as people, react to situations? You see, no matter what happens to us in life the experiences hold no meaning until we attach one to the specific situation. Emotions do not just happen to us, they are created by what meaning we give and what we allow our mind to dwell on. The great thing about this is we have more power over our emotions than what we might think. Let me give you an example. If a person fails at a task, they then have a choice to make. What meaning will they attach to that failure? Will it mean the 'end of the world' for them, will they believe that they are a failure as a person? Or, will they change the meaning to "I learned a lot from my failure and therefore will succeed next time because this failure made me smarter and stronger". Take time to reflect on the meaning you attach to situations in your own life. Will you become a victim because of what happens to you in life or will you become a hero? Choose wisely, because whatever meaning you give to any situation will be what shapes your inner beliefs about yourself.

2- Watch the language you use

What I mean by this is being aware of the words you choose when expressing your feelings toward situations. The words you choose have a great impact on how you feel. For example, if you are driving in rush hour traffic when another car cuts you off and you start shouting at the top of your lungs ("If one more car cuts me off, I will blow up") you will experience road rage. There will be a tremendous difference in how you feel if instead you had chosen different words to express your emotions ("Ok, that driver may be in a hurry or a new driver"). You see, the first example uses words that are very visual and display outrage. If you choose to use language like this you will get your blood boiling because you are creating a visual for yourself ("I am going to lose my mind, I will blow up"). Now try reflecting on how you communicate with yourself on a daily basis. It will take some time, but work on modifying the language you use to create a more calming a positive dialogue to reduce your overall stress, anxiety and anger.

3- Watch your daily focus

Another way to live a happier life is to become more aware of what you focus on every day. As Tony Robbins says "Focus equals feelings". The more you dwell on a thought, the stronger it will get. If you want to change your emotions, you have to change your focus. "Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it". (Charles R. Swindoll) Make sure to focus more on solutions and less on the problems. Also remember that the mind is your garden so what you plant will grow, regardless if they are positive or negative thoughts. If you want to always be unhappy choose to focus on negative thought, and without fail you will be miserable. On the flip side, if you choose to focus on positive thoughts then you have a bigger chance of living a happier life.

4- Remain in the present moment

Most people experience some form of anxiety, anger or sadness whenever they choose to focus on their past or future. One of my favorite books, "The Power of Now" gave me this key to happiness and I have been practicing to make it a habit ever since. Stay in the present moment. Why not! It might sound silly, as it did to me when I first read the book. However, Ekhart Tolle makes a great point. Take your fears for example, 85% of what we worry about never happens. Most of the time when we fear something it is because of what happened in the past or we are scared of the outcome in the future. Think of how many times you have felt anxiety, anger, jealousy or sadness when reliving your past or when creating stories that may play out in the future. If you want to live a happier life, try putting more energy into the present moment rather than worrying about the past or future.

Final words

None of us can control the amount of years we get on earth but we can all control the quality of the years we get. Make sure that you decide to be in control of your happiness by applying these four tips previously explained in this article. It is not easy to always try being in a positive frame of mind and you will still experience negative emotions. However, how long you dwell on specific emotions will be up to you. Remember, you are not a victim of your emotions, you are the creator. Now go and be great! And live a happy life.

#liveahappylife #Thepowerofnow #lifetips

Happy living is living in the moment

Thanks for reading! Raphael Huwiler