How do you get to happy?

I am sitting on my lanai (the Florida name for a screened porch) at sunset. The tree tops seem to be swaying to the rain-like melody of my fountain. A family of Florida Sandhill Cranes have paused to listen at the edge of the pond below. Otherwise, it is quiet. I feel at peace. I feel happy. My life isn’t perfect but right this minute it feels like I think perfect might feel. And I think all the happiness you ever find lies within you.

I am focusing on what is right rather than what is wrong; what is working rather than what is not. I intentionally search for moments like these as the balance to moments when I feel helpless trying to make this world a better place. I am affirmed when I read another’s words that feel like they came from my pen. As the sunset begins to hide, I pass them on to see if they resonate with you as a start-up strategy to get to happy.

Here are eight ideas:

1. “Choose to be the best YOU can be.– Give it your all in everything you do, commit to your goals, and don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Never try to be better than anyone else, but never stop trying to be the best you can be.
2. Choose to be around the right people.– Spend time with people who are smart, driven and like-minded.  Relationships should help you, not hurt you.  Surround yourself with people who reflect the person you want to be.
3. Choose to focus on what you have, not on what you haven’t.– When you appreciate what you have, what you have appreciates in value.
4. Choose a good attitude.– What often screws us up the most in life is the picture in our head of how it’s supposed to be.  And the reason so many of us give up is because we tend to look at how far we still have to go, instead of how far we have come.
5. Choose to smile more often.– A smile is a choice, not a miracle.  A genuine smile makes you and everyone around you feel better.
6. Choose to take care of your body.– If you don’t have your physical energy in good shape, then your mental energy (your focus), your emotional energy (your feelings), and your spiritual energy (your purpose) will all be negatively affected.
7. Choose honesty.– Start being honest with yourself and everyone else.  Be faithful.  Be kind.  Do the right thing!  Integrity is the essence of everything successful.
8. Choose to embrace the next step in your life.– Never let success get to your head and never let failure get to your heart.  Every day is a new beginning and a new ending.  Embrace it, make the best of it, smile, and keep looking straight ahead.

The choice is yours. Choose happiness! [1]

(1) http://www.marcandangel.com/2012/03/01/10-ways-happy-people-choose-happiness/

The question is, how do YOU get to happy? Comment and share a smile in your own words.   Take your seat at the table. I love that you are here.

    Until next time, remember,

• You are not alone.

• You are not your circumstances.

• You have everything within you to live a purpose-filled life.