How does one live a happy life? As a happiness blogger, I have some thoughts on this, so here are some tips on how to live a happy life.
A happy life to me is one with no regrets – that when you are on your death bed, you can review your life and feel content and satisfied with what you have done and/or accomplished.
1. Pursue realistic goals and dreams
Do you have goals and dreams and are you seeing them through? Are there things you wish you had done or accomplished that you haven’t yet? Are they realistic dreams and goals?
We all have dreams – some can be unrealistic and others are entirely unrealistic.
For example, in another life, I would have loved to be a photojournalist for a magazine like National Geographic, traveling the world, experiencing other cultures and learning about other cultures. However, I decided not to pursue this direction because for me, it seemed unrealistic. So I save this wonderful dream as just that – a dream for another lifetime, but not something that I will actually ever make happen. And I am perfectly happy with that.
One factor for living a happy life is to establish your goals and dreams, write them down even, decide which ones are realistic to pursue and to pursue them! And don’t forget about them as you proceed through life.
2. Be mindful of your actions – always
As mentioned, another factor for how to live a happy life is to live a life without regrets, so be careful of your actions at all times.
One must consider – will I regret this later if I pursue this direction? You must always think about the repercussions of your actions. To act compulsively without thinking of the repercussions is a huge mistake. Always be mindful of your actions so that you will not regret them later in life. To live with regret is a heavy burden indeed, so it is best to avoid this pitfall.
And, if you do have regrets, then how can you correct your mistakes to avoid the same ones in the future? A key to being happy in life is to not continue to repeat the same mistakes. Learn from your mistakes and don’t keep repeating them.
3. Live a life of gratitude
Another way for how to live a happy life is to be grateful of all that you have, even when life is most challenging.
Life can throw unexpected curve balls, and we need to roll with the punches to survive and land on our feet again. Sometimes, we lose. Sometimes, we lose things that are most important to us – such as a love, a long-term relationship or marriage, a home, or a job or career.
However, when you count your blessings instead of your losses and focus foremost on all remaining in your life that you are grateful for, it is far easier to feel happier even when life is challenging.
Conversely, when you focus foremost on your losses, what happens? You feel unhappy! So, develop an attitude of gratitude, and it will help your happiness quotient!
4. Place a priority on your happiness
If all you do in life is work, sleep and eat, then you are hardly living. To live a happy life, we must pursue activities, interests and hobbies that make us happy!
If you have placed your happiness as low priority, then you will suffer and will never feel happy.
So, get out there and do what you most enjoy! Live your life to the fullest – always!
Sure, obligations and responsibilities can weigh us down sometimes and can distract us from pursuing our own lives. But, be sure to stop and smell the roses! Be sure to create and carve out time for your enjoyment in life – whatever that involves!
It is important to pursue our interests and deepest desires in order to be happy.
5. Surround yourself with people who make you happy
To be happiest in life, avoid toxic people, avoid negative people and avoid unnecessary drama. These types of people drain us of our energy and make us unhappy! Drama also makes us unhappy! Who needs it!
Instead, surround yourself with those people who make you happiest! This will be the more positive people in life, those who support and encourage you and lift you up rather than bring you down.
To live a happy life is to live a life free of toxicity and negativity. So avoid these types like the plague!
6. Give of yourself to others
Finally, there is no greater gift in this world than giving ourselves to others. Give of yourself freely. Help someone in need when the occasion arises. Give back to your community in some way, whether that be through charitable donations or volunteer work. You can make a difference, even with the smallest act of kindness and giving. In doing so, you will feel good about yourself. You will have helped another, or many other people. This feels good!
When we live life only for ourselves, then what do we have to say for ourselves in the end?
To feel like you have contributed positively and beyond just yourself fulfills the soul at the deepest levels. So, help another. Contribute to this world with acts of kindness, love and charity.
So, there are some tips on how to live a happy life. I hope this has helped you, my reader, and here’s to your happiness!