Who knew that being happy was not something that comes natural and is automatic!? You actually have to learn how to live in such a way. My curious self (and a psychobio major) started to read up on studies and found some very interesting insight on what happier people do differently. Not to toot my own horn, but I'm known out of all my friends as the happy go lucky positive ball of energy and crazy enough all of the things on this list that I will be sharing are things that I do and believe will contribute to being a happier YOU! Yes there are things day to day that get me down, but big picture... I go home and think "I'm so happy!" I know it sounds corny but I thought I'd share this. I want to inspire you or someone you know to take on some of these tips for a happier life.
- EXPRESS GRATITUDE. - When I wake up in the morning (I'm sooooo tired) but then I go teach my morning fitness class and think, "I'm so thankful for my amazing students!" I say to my athletes, "Thank you for working so hard! Thank you for making me enjoy my job!" I'm thankful for living in beautiful SoCal. I'm thankful for good music to pump me up. These are just the things I think within the first couple of hours of getting up. The day goes on and I seriously think to myself every hour what I'm thankful for!!! The value of what you have appreciates when you appreciate it. It's actually really cool! You basically have a have a greater state of happiness if you appreciate all the things you already have in your life. It's going to be pretty damn hard to appreciate anything if you're not already happy with what you have. Being grateful for what is already evident in your life gives you a deeper sense of happiness... all without having to go out and buy anything.
- CREATE OPTIMISM. - I'm always quick to turn any situation into a positive one. My friends make fun of me sometimes because I don't even realize I'm doing it. It's actually pretty funny because I can take even a really awful situation and somehow see the bright side to it. My friend's car got towed and here I am quick to say "At least you get to skateboard... that's fun!" Someone comes into KMW where I sell memberships and tells me he's unemployed. Instead of thinking "oh no, he has no money"... I think "Great, he has a ton of free time to train!" Winners have the ability to create their own optimism. No matter what the situation is, successful people will always convince themselves that there is a positive side. They look at failure as a way to learn and grow from it. Those who think optimistically see the world as a place packed with endless opportunities, especially when times are rough. Try to see the good to every situation!
- AVOID
OVER-THINKING AND SOCIAL COMPARISON. - Comparing yourself to others can
be toxic! Instead, if you really feel the urge to compare yourself...
then compare yourself to an earlier version of you! I know a few people
(we all know some of these) who always compare and you can just tell
they are unhappy! It's unhealthy and I'll explain why. If you believe
you are "better" than someone, your ego grows... and boooom... the inner
Kanye West is out! You just created an unhealthy sense of
superiority! If you compare yourself and then think you're "worse,"
you'll start to push aside all the progress you've accomplished and
discredit all of your hard work.
- PRACTICE ACTS OF KINDNESS. - I try to do something nice everyday, multiple times a day! And every time I do, I feel really good about myself. Reason behind this is that doing acts of kindness actually causes your brain to release a feel good chemical, serotonin. When you do something for someone else in a selfless manner, it makes you feel good about yourself. Also, just watching others perform acts of kindness can cause the feel good feeling as well. I'm sure you've experienced this! So it's an amazing positive cycle. You feel good when you do something nice... and others around you feel good too.
- NURTURE SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS. The happiest people are those who have deep, meaningful relationships. In my opinion, I'd rather be poor and have my friends with me than rich and lonely. If it wasn't for my amazing support team, I probably wouldn't be where I am today. Having a good circle of friends to share your life with is important for happiness. Interesting fact... People's mortality rates are doubled when they are lonely. Stay connected and nurture those social relationships.
- LEARN TO FORGIVE. Holding on to feelings of hatred has a negative impact on your well-being. Your brain cannot tell the difference between past and present emotions. So if you're always thinking about the hate you have for someone, those negative emotions will eat at your immune system and it will be a never ending cycle of unhappiness. It's better to forgive and move on.
- INCREASE FLOW EXPERIENCES. Flow is a state where you are completely engaged in what you are doing. It's as if time is standing still. You don't feel hungry, sleepy or emotional. Your focus is turned on and nothing can distract you. I'm basically in "flow" right now as I write this blog. I also do this when I'm painting gloves... designing clothes for Rep Life... or teaching my Krav Maga Bag classes.
- SAVOR LIFE'S JOYS. Sometimes you need to stop and enjoy what is happening. Slow down and take it in. Put your phone away, forget updating your FB status, or posting on Instagram and just enjoy the magic of the moment. It's very difficult in a world filled with stimuli to embrace life's enjoyable experiences. Trust me, I know it's hard... I'm social media queen. However, when I really want to take it in, I truly make effort and it's so rewarding.
- COMMIT TO YOUR GOALS. Last year I made it my goal to get a muscle up by the end of the year. I remember it being around Thanksgiving time last year and I still felt like I had so much work to do. Early December I got my muscle up transition (basically a pull up on the rings to the bottom of a tricep dip), but was still not strong enough to press up from there. Uggghhh how frustrating!!! I was so determined, I practiced ring dips everyday until I finally built the strength to do it on an actual muscle up. A week before the end of the year, I was starting to lose hope. On Christmas Eve, I actually got my first muscle up... in fact I did 5 that day! It was one of the most exciting things. Being wholeheartedly dedicated to doing something comes fully-equipped with an ineffable force. Magical things start to happen when we commit ourselves to doing whatever it takes to get something done. When you fully commit yourself, you have no choice but to work on the task at hand. Counter-intuitively, having no option... where you cannot change your mind... subconsciously makes us humans happier because we know part of our purpose.
- TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY. Taking care of your
body is so important for happiness. When you don't take care of
yourself... energy levels run low... physically, mentally, emotionally,
and spiritually. When you workout consistently, you not only are in
better physical shape, but you feel better and have a higher sense of
self-accomplishment. Mentally, you can focus better... and spiritually,
you have higher self worth. I know that when I workout and eat
healthy, I feel GREAT! When I take a few days off and eat crap, I feel
like crap. I start to get sad and become depressed. My self worth goes
down. All it takes is for me to get back in my routine and I'm back to
sunshiny positive KHo who wants to share happiness with the world...
like right now by writing this blog for you guys!
