Just Behind the Door

If you were to rank how happy you are with your life right now on a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being totally unhappy and 10 being very happy) what would be your number? Really think about it before you assign a number. We may say we want greater happiness in our life but then the question surfaces – what are we are doing to achieve it? As simple as it may sound it really is in the way we choose to view life. When we decide to focus on the positives in our life it helps us achieve a belief system of possibilities. It causes us to see in color rather than black and white. Positive energy is like the Energizer Bunny because it attracts more of the same to us and just doesn’t seem to run out.

Some may delude themselves into thinking they need something else – a person, place or thing to achieve greater happiness in their life. As intriguing as a new car, house, or relationship may sound they are not the answer. Happiness is not a result of acquiring more but recognizing how fortunate we are every day to be alive and able to make our little place in the world a bit better. By practicing gratitude for what we have on a daily basis we become happier, better adjusted individuals. The truth is that at this moment you have everything you will ever need to be your happiest self because it really is an inside job.

Think about the topic of happiness a different way by trying this one on for size, ‘being happy is simple, being unhappy is complicated.’ It really does take more energy and effort to perseverate on something that caused us unhappiness. Some of us let our negative emotions persist longer than is necessary or certainly healthy. To stay angry, resentful or unhappy about anything in our life takes emotional effort. In this state our bodies actually produce chemicals in our brains that match our emotions which can effect our health long term. Is it worth it? To make matters worse often our memories may even add implications to the situations that never even existed! That is what’s meant by making a mountain out of a molehill. When we stop resurrecting the incident it is impossible to stay angry or negative for more than a few minutes.

Think about the last time you were really bothered about something. It was exhausting right? When our minds work overtime to remember an unhappy situation we are actually stealing time away from living today. Each of us has a finite amount of time on this earth. Does it make sense to waste even a moment remembering something that caused us stress or unhappiness? It happened, it’s over and time to move on. You are too important to this world to waste a moment of your time in what was – better to move on to a place of what could be in the future.

When we decide to develop a habit of positive thinking both our physical and mental health improves and just think… it all starts when we start to practice gratitude.

Have a great few days!