#ChasingHappiness – My Happiness Project

Listen to Music More

Music stimulates the part of your brain that causes happiness. Listening to music can create peak emotions, which increase the amount of dopamine, a specific neurotransmitter that is produced in the brain and helps control the brain’s reward and pleasure centers.       

Meditation

I am a  big believer in ‘Meditation’. It makes your mind sharper and alert along with reducing stress and enhancing positive energy.

Some schools are even using meditation to help kids deal with stressful situations. You can find great meditation music on youtube.com or download a Meditation App on your phone or computer.

Yoga, like  Meditation, is extremely good for the brain. They both are actually two of the best exercises for the human brain.

If you have never done yoga before then start now. Not only will it increase your flexibility, but it will prevent middle-age spread. This is an exercise the entire family can do.

Do Hypnosis

I actually had a hypnosis session for ‘sleep issues’ in my last city and it worked. A professional told me how to do an exercise when I had trouble falling to sleep. Sleep is extremely important so hypnosis for bringing more happiness into your life probably could work.

Keep a Food Diary Journal

Most people don’t have any idea what they eat during the day, so therefore, keep a food diary. Certain foods can actually make you sad.

I only eat blood type foods, which not only make me happy but give me energy as well. There are Vegan, Vegetarian, Blood Type, Gluten-Free, Paleo, Keto, and other diets.

The problem is most folks today eat the Standard American Diet (also called “SAD”) and that should tell you something. The diet is full of processed foods with no nutritional value and can actually cause you to be sad and depressed.                                         

Eat At Home

When you eat out, you have no idea what ingredients are in your foods, which can cause an allergic reaction or these foods can make you sad.     

Sing In the Morning

Mornings set the tone for the entire day so sing in the morning and be happy. Most people are more productive from 8:00-12:00 p.m., so sing and just be happy.     

Stop Watching TV

Television is negative today and it does nothing but forces you — just like Hollywood – to think negatively about your life. It does nothing but ‘robs your soul’ of fun and happiness. 

Try especially to avoid turning it on in the mornings — your most productive time of the day. Instead, listen to laughter yoga, or motivational speakers on Youtube.

No one pays for cable anymore. You can easily rent movies on Netflix.com, Amazon.com, Hulu.com, etc. You can receive all your news from independent media by email so subscribe to independent media websites and turn off the TV.  

Exercise

Exercising releases feel-good endorphins. It is a great way to change your mood so make sure you exercise several days a week or find a hobby that is physical, such as walking, hiking, swimming, tennis, etc.                   

Get More Sleep

You should get at least 7 or 8 hours of sleep every night. Children ages 18 or younger, need 9 or 10 hours of sleep.

Most people don’t know it but if you don’t get enough sleep, you won’t just be in a bad mood all day, but you can cause issues in your marriage and family, and make you crave bad foods. 

So invest in a good mattress and pillow. The goal is to go to bed at the same time every night and get up the same time every day — even on weekends.         

Give Up Alcohol

Try to take #BabySteps and give up alcohol. Not only does alcohol make you sleepy, but it can make you SAD. It has a negative effect on the brain.   

Hang Out With Enthusiastic Friends

Make time for friends — but stop gossiping. Having strong social bonds is a key to happiness. People get a mood boost from contact with others.

However, select good people to be in your circle. No one wants to be around negative, ‘doom and gloom’ people, so hang out with others that are enthusiastic about life.

As I travel around the country, I make it a point to visit friends. Many are now elderly so I guess you can say I do welfare checks on my friends especially the ones that are still enthusiastic about life.     

Watch What You Say To People – #WordsMatter

Many people are on edge today so watch what you are saying to people. Even when you make posts on social media, just watch what you are saying to people. Try to choose nice and uplifting words.    

Don’t Focus on a Bad Mood

Try not to focus on a bad mood – it will pass. Go for a walk or engage in an activity. Men are better at this than women. Women continue to focus on a bad mood so this might take some practice for women.           

Use Your Good Dishes

Use your good dishes. Why set aside these things you might never get to use, therefore, use your good dishes.                                       

Clean Up Clutter

I started my career off as a secretary, so in order for me to be able to write every day and be productive, I need a clutter-free environment.

So clean up your space, place, and throw stuff out especially clothes that you no longer wear. If you have things in your closet that you know you are not going to wear — get rid of them. If you have clothing with sentimental value, keep it somewhere else in your house.             

Tackle A Long-Delayed Chore

 Once you complete a chore that you have been putting off, it will bring more happiness.                         

Act The Way You Want To Feel

Smile and act happy and somehow you will get there. Children smile hundreds of times a day, however, adults only smile 4 to 17 times a day – so smile more.            

Do New Things

People who do new things are apt to be happier than people who continue to do the same things day in and out.

This is why I travel to new cities and meet new people. It brings so much happiness into my life.         

Do Fun Things

Books are fun for me. Selecting them and reading non-fiction books are so much fun especially ‘self-help’ books.

Also, I love going to meetup.com meetings and meeting new people. I also enjoy traveling, photography, surfing the internet, crocheting, sewing, dancing, watching movies and going to the gym.  

Be More Generous

Do things like helping others think big. Give other people great suggestions. Doing good deeds brings happiness and remember the best way to make others happy is to be happy yourself.                                                                 

Bring People Together

Introduce people to other people. Set up a high school reunion or another event. Hold events at your home or hold a meetup.com meeting in your community.                           

Do What You Love

If you are in a  job that you no longer enjoy, get another one — even in another city, go back to school or start a business.  Do what you love and allow your kids to do what they love – youth business ownership.      

Downsize Your Living Arrangements

At 62 I was seriously thinking about obtaining a “Tiny Home” to live in until I came up with the idea of Full-Time RVing. I am currently living in an Efficiency/Studio apartment so downsizing my living arrangements have made me much happier.

Because I am saving money from downsizing, I now have more funds to eat better foods and travel, which is more important to me than buying ‘shiny things’ – so live a #MinimalistLifestyle. 

Visit Libraries

Many people today don’t even step into libraries anymore. Libraries are a great place to find interesting information and people. As I travel around the country, I always visit as many libraries as I can.

Most have a bulletin board to see local events or find out what events are being held in the libraries. I always ask if I can hold my own events in these facilities (seminars and workshops). I also check out library books and read magazines or just bring my laptop and work on my other projects there.    

Start A Blog

You can start a free blog at www.Blogger.com or www.WordPress.com. Find some way to put down your thoughts that can possibly turn into a  book project. A blog or journaling will work. Blog about what you are passionate about. Try to blog every day or at least every other day. 

Happy People Make Good Marriage Mates

Men are not attracted to women who are not happy. Happy people find it easier to get married and stay married.

Get An Outdoor and Indoor Game

Couples should have an indoor and outdoor game in order to keep interests in their relationship.  

Hug Your Spouse More

It’s important to practice hugging more especially your spouse, mate, significant other or partner and especially your children. It will make a big difference in how you view the world and how it views you.       

Don’t Ignore Your Spouse

Many people end up less considerate of their mates. Have date nights with your spouse and spend quality time together. Show each other love and put each other first. Be nice to each other and treat your mate better than you treat others.          

Don’t Dump Minor Issues On Your Mate

Couples do pick up on the mood of their spouses, so, therefore, it’s important not to dump your minor issues on your spouse.

Don’t allow nagging and petty issues to ruin your relationship. Be happy, stop complaining and blaming your spouse, mate, significant other or partner for petty issues.     

Read Books on Happy Relationships

There are tons of great reading material out there for people in relationships. Men and women approach relationships, especially intimacy differently because “Men Are From Mars and Women are from Venus.”  Read the book “Love After 50” so you can keep an active sex life as you age.    

Children Bring Happiness

Children do bring more happiness to relationships. You might have ups and downs when you have children, but overall, people are happier with children. If you can’t have children today because of GMOs, contact surrogacy programs, do IVF or adopt.       

Keep Happy Memories Alive

Keep happy memories around you because they will make you #Happy. I keep pictures of myself and my children close to my work area. My photo albums are not far away.

Send photos to family members, but be careful posting pictures online especially pictures of your children with all the pedophiles collecting these pictures today. I also kept all my daughter’s memorabilia from their schools and presented it to them when they were grown.  

Take Time for Family Projects

Sometimes the happiness comes from planning a family home project. I made sure my family had cakes, balloons, and cards for their birthdays. I even took pictures for 18 years of both my daughter’s birthdays. Family projects excited me especially when I knew everyone would get a kick out of the work I put in. 

Go Off the Beaten Path

Get your creative juices going by doing different things. Everyone has skills and talents which are of value to others so do things that excite you. Learn to cook, sew or shoot a gun. Create your own meetup.com group. 

Take Time to Be Silly

Let your silly-side shine through. Most people don’t know that I have a very ‘comedic side’ that I used to have in school growing up. As I get older and as life gets easier as a Senior, it is definitely coming back to me.  

Feel Right

Try to feel right by living the life you know you are supposed to be living. Don’t think you will be happier in the future than you are in the present.      

Choose Joy and Happiness

You have to wake up and choose to be happy. I do this when I spring out of bed every day. First thing I do is juice green foods which release ‘feel-good’ serotonin in my brain, which helps me feel good.  Then I go and work out, which releases ‘feel-good’ endorphins in my brain. So get a ‘feel-good’ routine for you and your family.  

Being happy can help you:

• Be more productive.
• Makes you more helpful.
• Makes you more likable.
• Makes you friendlier.
• Makes you a better leader.
• Makes you physically attractive.