Do You Want to Be Happy?
How important is it for you to be happy? We all appreciate the personal value of living in a state of less stress and greater satisfaction. The good news is that there are specific steps you can take to live a happier life!
Can a business case be built for the positive value of happiness in the work environment? Studies show that employee happiness results in:
- increased productivity
- less turnover
- reduced absenteeism
In his book What Happy People Know the author, Dan Baker, identifies Six Happiness Tools that all of us can use. I’d like to share three of these with you:
- Appreciation
- Choice
- Personal Power
Tool # 1: Appreciation
What Dr. Baker calls appreciation, I refer to as gratitude. In our December, 2009 e-newsletter, we talked about the “Power of Gratitude.” Appreciating the people and things around you is an important beginning. Let’s take it one step further.
Appreciation is choosing to be mindful of the good things in your life rather than focusing on the negative. How do you do this? A key to happiness is to be able to re-frame.
You can look at situations in two ways: what is wrong or what is right. To re-frame, instead of looking at all the bad things related to a challenging problem, person or situation ask yourself questions like, “What good can come of this?” “What can I learn from this?” “What is the ‘hidden’ blessing or benefit?”
Recently we had about two feet of water in our basement as a result of persistent rain and a failed pump; a problem we’ve never had during 15 years of living here. Although we got very weary of all the vacuuming, cleaning and the loss of belongings, we kept saying to each other, “It could have been worse.” We could have been away and not known there was a problem. There could have been four feet of water instead of two. No one was hurt, nothing of real value was lost, and we were able to recover. Plus, we realized we needed a new pump! Now we will be good for another 20 years.
Tool # 2: Choice
One of the things that can cause us the most pressure and unhappiness is the feeling that we are “trapped” or have no options. Lack of finances, ill health and job insecurity are examples of situations that can lead us to feel we have no choice.
The antidote to this is to begin listing the options you DO have. This will require you to “think outside of the box.” It can be useful to enlist the aide of someone who knows you to help you identify some options. You may need to try something you have never done before. Your behavior and your thought process may need to be modified. Maybe it’s time to learn a new skill or seek a new environment. All of these can be good things as they open up your mind to the possibilities rather than the limitations in life.
Tool # 3: Personal Power
Having the mindset that you have control over your own destiny can be a revelation. How many of us give away our personal power to others? If you think your happiness depends on the words and actions of others, you are giving away your peace of mind.
Realize that what other people do or say does not determine your self-worth or success. Last week I read an inspiring quote “It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s who you think you’re not.” (Author unknown.) Knowing that you have the power to take responsibility and take the action required to succeed gives you a sense of personal peace and confidence. Other people can’t rattle you when you are calm and secure in yourself.
Now, wouldn’t it be great if we could snap our fingers and make all these great changes? Here’s my own take: “Happiness Takes Perseverance.” Just like losing weight, saving for your dream vacation or learning to play the piano, when you want something worthwhile you just have to keep doing the right thing. Behavior and thought patterns don’t change overnight, but isn’t your happiness worth the effort?
