Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Little Things That Bring Joy To Life

 


Living in a society that promotes looking far ahead, seeing the “big picture”, and finally reach that ultimate goal that we are all so sure will bring us an endless amount of happiness. It’s always to have long-term goals, but sometimes we forget to stop and take stock of all the little things that bring us happiness through out the day: a nice text message, date nights, time spent with friends, family, running into someone you haven’t seen in awhile, fresh flowers, a kind gesture from a stranger, etc. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about the big picture, but sometimes it really is the small things that adds up to be the big thing. Today Peter Minkoff has written a beautiful guest post about some of the small things in life that can bring us so much happiness.
We all strive to find happiness and live our best lives. However, striving to reach a certain goal doesn’t always mean that we will reach it. Happiness is not easily defined and trying to reach it can take us on different paths. So, being aware of what we want in life and the things that will make us content is the first step to happiness. Having said that, there are some things that will have a positive effect on all of our lives regardless of our goals - those are the little things in life. There’s even research that shows that the frequency of positive feelings is more correlated with the overall happiness than the intensity of those feelings.

Music

Listening to music can bring us real joy. You should always have your iPod ready for those situations when you can’t listen to your music out loud. Make a playlist of all your favorite songs and listen to it on your way to work. This will make you happy and will prepare you for all the challenges you might face in the office.

A kind gesture


Kind gestures go both ways. When you do something nice for someone, you are making their day, which will make you feel better as well. A kind gesture can be anything nice we do for other people. It might be holding the doors for someone, buying your friend a cup of coffee, taking the trash out when no one asked you to… The important thing is that we did something nice. It will make us feel good knowing that we did it.

Stretching

A good stretch goes a long way. Stretching relaxes our muscles, lowers our blood pressure, improves circulation, and has a positive effect on our mood. So, when you wake up tomorrow make sure you stretch in bed before you get up. Stretching can be great for your workday as well. If you have a sedentary job you should stretch in the office as well. It might look funny but the positive effects are serious, seriously positive.

Romance


This is an obvious one, but we sometimes need reminding. Having a stable romantic relationship and someone we can share those everyday little things with brings us great joy. So, if you are still looking for that special someone or if you are in a relationship, stop making dating mistakes and start appreciating what you have. Tell your partner how you feel, do something nice for them and welcome joy in your life.

Mini vacation

You don’t have to wait a whole year to go on vacation - you can have one every day. Take fifteen minutes every day and turn them into your vacation. Think of something you enjoy doing and let yourself enjoy your fifteen minutes. It can be as simple as having a cup of coffee, reading your favorite blog, texting your friend… Your fifteen minutes should be about you - don’t think about work or other commitments and relax.

Pets

Spending time with our pets can help us cope with stress and make us happy. They are adorable, they love us, and they are always very happy to see us. Spending time with our pets if better for our health than any other activity we can think off, it is even better than exercising! Tonight when you get home from work let your pet know how much you love them. If you don’t have a pet there is a solution - make friends with your friends’ pets. You can offer to take them out for a walk. Your friends will definitely appreciate you helping them with their pets and you are sure to feel good for helping your friends while spending time with a friendly fluff ball.    



3 comments:

  1. Music, Pets, A Holiday, A Kind Gesture, Family,
    all give meaning to life every single day !!!
    Can't live without doing good. Can't life without DOGS, Vacations, Music & My Family

    ReplyDelete