5 Ways to be Ridiculously Happy When Shit Happens

5 Ways to be RIDICULOUSLY Happy When Shit Happens!

While I edit photos and do homework, I've been listening to to a badass audiobook entitled, The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor. If you've never heard of him or you're interested in positive psychology, then please check out his TED talk: HERE!

I love positive psychology. Summed up by Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: "We believe that a psychology of positive human functioning will arise, which achieves a scientific understanding and effective interventions to build thriving individuals, families, and communities." (source: Wikipedia)

In his book, Achor covers many different ways to improve your life through positive psychology. I love him for his honesty, because he's very real about the reality of failure and how opportunity can be found in our failures. While the book is concentrated mainly on how positive psychology relates to work, it's very easy to apply it to all aspects of life.

While listening, I was inspired to write this post on happiness.

What is happiness? 
Happiness seems to be the goal of all human beings. Happy is a documentary currently on Netflix and a great watch. In the beginning of the documentary, they interview a variety of different people and ask them what they want in life. Generally, the responses are to be happy!

In a recent post, I talked about the idea of easy. We are quite often given easy advice. Love yourself, someone says. Don't worry, be happy.

OK, but how exactly does one do that? I was always curious that while adults seemingly offered me "good" advice while I was growing up, they rarely gave me the resources to follow through. Part of that may just be that people have to figure it out for themselves, but those same adults also told me sharing is caring.

The Five Ways
1. Write down three things that make you happy everyday. 
I'm absolutely stealing this from Shawn Achor, although I used to do some form of this before I heard of him. Write down three things that make you happy, but they have to be different each day.

Here's my list today (which I've extended to five):
1. I am thankful for my parents. I just moved back home with them and it feels warm, cuddly, and safe!
2. I got donuts this morning from my favorite place and they gave me donut holes for free. AND they complimented my hair. I wished them all a great day and promptly inhaled those donuts.
3. My mom has this bomb ass coffee machine, so it tastes just like Starbucks without my wallet crying.
4. I get to meet up with a friend today at the bookstore.
5. Speaking of a friend! A friend and I have been talking over the last few days about going through some personal issues. I was thinking about her this morning and wishing her well when she texted me to say that she was thinking about me. It was such a positive boost!

2. Surround yourself with positive people and things.
My lovely friend Patrick, who is a very talented Ceramics major, had a bunch of pieces that he didn't want anymore. Luckily, he was sweet enough to give one to me. I've turned it into a positivity jar. I write down encouraging messages and reminders for myself. Any time that I feel down, I reach into the jar and I'm instantly revived.

Sailor Moon is full of wisdom.

3. Revive something from your childhood that makes you smile.
I still watch and read Sailor Moon. She was one of my idols growing up. I still have the theme song on my phone, which I listen to whenever I need a boost. When I was growing up, I loved the idea of being able to transform into a super hero. I used to be mortified that anyone would catch me still watching it, but now I've realized they still probably watch their own favorite cartoons.

4. Write yourself a simple to-do list.
As a recovering perfectionist, my hardest struggle is to let go of the desire to do it all. Simply, you can't do it all. It's just not humanly possible and yet, for years I let that make me unhappy. Now, I like to decorate my to-do lists with simple and fun reminders that keep me upbeat throughout the day. I feel accomplished and quite often, I'm much more productive with my work with these new to-do lists.


5. Do a random act of kindness.
I love doing acts of kindness. They make me feel as cuddly as a teddy bear, homies. The thing about random acts of kindness though is that they must be intentional. Even if it's just sending a text to a friend who you know is going through a tough time, send it with all the intention of pure love. The point is not to get a pat on the back from your friends, saying, "Wow, you're so kind!" Rather, focus on extending love as you would hope to receive it. By appreciating other people, we work to build a better community.

Those, my BABES, are five simple ways to be ridiculously happy when shit happens!

XOXO
Girl Warrior

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