Activating Happiness #2
In a world in which we can know far too much about other people (or at least the slice they share or portray on social media), I find this observation from Martin Seligman especially helpful. “Authentic happiness derives from raising the bar for yourself, not rating yourself against others.”
You can’t help but be curious about other people. And while social media in all its many forms has plenty of positives, it is also easy to get sucked into undue life comparison and influence.
As it turns out, you can activate your own authentic happiness in an infinite number of simple ways, often without even intending to create that result. Here are some examples gleaned from Gretchen Rubin’s book, The Happiness Project:
- Finish a nagging task. When you schedule the dentist appointment, clean out the pantry, send the note, or do any number of things that you’ve been procrastinating, you inherently feel better. You reduce your mental clutter. Sometimes, these only take 45 seconds or 15 minutes to actually do or initiate.
- Give proofs of love. Intentionally find simple ways to show your love by giving a small gift, putting it into words, helping them with something, sharing a hug, or doing something together. Create tangible proofs of love. It is rather difficult to do this and not intrinsically know that you did the right thing, no matter how elated or baffled the other person may be.
- Here are more ideas: Learn something new. Pursue a passion. Create time for friends. Keep a gratitude journal. Call people on their birthdays.
These ideas may not be what you thought could generate happiness, but authentic happiness comes from genuinely creating and doing good. So, instigate some good energy in your world today!
Worth Repeating
One thing that surprised me was that as soon as I started to think about how to be happier, I realized how happy I was already. My appreciation for my life increased dramatically, once I examined it.
-Gretchen Rubin
