Archive for: Our Happiness Blog

Have you ever seen a word cloud where words are combined into an image? The larger the word, the greater its frequency or importance. I encourage to you to make a word cloud of your emotions by listing all the emotions you experienced during the past week. You might notice words like frustrated, disappointed, sad, angry, or proud. What emotions will be in smaller font sizes on your cloud, the emotions you did not experience often? What emotions occurred more frequently and seem more important? It’s beneficial to take stock of our emotions every once in awhile to determine whether certain emotions are affecting our attitudes and behaviors, especially if we are feeling stuck in an emotion right now.

The lesson I find most important in this exercise is that emotions eventually pass and are replaced by others. Take a look at that list, how many emotions are listed? How many of those emotions are you experiencing right now? How many emotions did you forget until you began this exercise? Whatever pain, suffering, or turmoil you may be experiencing at the moment, they will eventually fade and replaced by a whole new host of emotions.

When was the first time you found yourself truly intrigued by or connected with nature? For me, it was the first time I sat on a boat dock listening to the water. I could easily spend all day with my feet in the water, watching the small fishing boats, and soaking up the sun. Connecting with nature as we bicycle along a trail, sit on the beach, or take in a day at the park has a soothing effect on the body as our minds can feel free from hassles and other problems. Numerous studies have demonstrated spending time in the outdoors is associated with less stress and improved moods. Likewise, time outdoors can foster creativity and distract us from our thoughts. This is the perfect time of the year to pop outside and spend energy reconnecting with your dear friend, nature.

Somebody to Love by Kacey Musgraves is one of my favorite songs. It reminds me of the commonalities we share with our neighbors.

We’re all hoping, we’re all hopeless
We’re all thorns and we’re all roses
We’re all looking down our noses at ourselves
We’re all flawed and we’re all perfect
We’re all lost and we’re all hurting
And just searching for somebody to love

We’re all liars, we’re all legends
We’re all tens, that want elevens
We’re all trying to get to heaven, but not today
We’re all happy, we’re all hatin’
We’re all patiently impatient
And just waiting for somebody to love

We’re all good, but we ain’t angels
We all sin, but we ain’t devils
We’re all pots and we’re all kettles
But we can’t see it in ourselves
We’re all livin’ ’til we’re dying
We ain’t cool, but man, we’re trying
Just thinking we’ll be fixed by someone else

We all wrangle with religion
We all talk, but we don’t listen
We’re all starving for attention then we’ll run
We’re all paper, we’re all scissors
We’re all fightin’ with our mirrors
Scared we’ll never find somebody to love…

…Just tryin’ to hold it all together
We all wish our best was better
Just hopin’ that forever’s really real
We’ll miss a dime to grab a nickel
Overcomplicate the simple
We’re all little kids just looking for love
Yeah, don’t we all just want somebody to love?

Jumpstart the month of June by celebrating a few of these national holidays.

June 4 – National Hug Your Cat Day: Show your little, fuzzy friend how much you care by giving your buddy a big hug. Be careful because if your cat is anything like mine you may need to protect yourself from some scratches.

June 10 – National Iced Tea Day: Kick-off summer a few days early with the traditional summer drink that’s cooled us down since 1904!

June 15 – National Smile Power Day: Pass cheer around by giving a smile to strangers and friends alike.

June 21 – International Yoga Day: Stretch it out and relax some.

June 26 – National Forgiveness Day: Take time today to reflect on the past in order to forgive yourself or someone else.

It is natural to focus on closed doors as we reflect on the past, process our emotions about an ending, or are unready to move further in our lives. As we attribute our attention toward the past, we may miss opportunities or pleasantries around us. This narrow vision precludes us from noticing our surroundings and the constant change of life. We may find happiness is already around us when we turn from the closed doors and open our eyes (and hearts) to noticing it.

I recently had the opportunity to visit the beach and it reminded me of how magical life can be. Listening to the waves, finding the perfect seashell along the shoreline, and sending my footprints off into the ocean put me in a state of awe. I found myself curious about what extends beyond the visible eye and lives on the other side of the sea. I experienced a true true sense of tranquility as I walked through the sand and wondered how I could capture this magic and bring it into my daily life. The answer mostly resides with finding inner peace through quieting my inner critic, enjoying my leisure time, and breaking away from the everyday hassles.

Where do you find tranquility? How can you capture that magic and experience it in your everyday life?

When is the last time you were silly? Maybe you spoke to your niece using your best pirate impression or perhaps you photo-bombed someone’s selfie with your tongue stuck out. Generally, we become less silly over time and one lesson we learn from children is how important it is to let loose and have fun with ourselves. This means taking a break from the seriousness of life to be goofy and put a grin on your face. You might just find the respite or peace you need in some of your more atypical antics.

A new study at Duke University’s Center for Cognitive Neuroscience demonstrated participants experienced significant happiness when they were able to skip an ad before watching an Internet video as measured by increases in endorphin and serotonin levels. fMRI images also revealed the pleasure centers in participants’ brains were activated when the skip ad box appeared on the screen.

I take multiple perspectives when considering these results. First, maybe small indulgences, such as skipping ads, contribute to overall happiness. One could then argue other small indulgences, like shopping or a night out, have similar effects on happiness. Alternatively, maybe we enjoy the control of removing something irrelevant or uninteresting because it is a barrier to our ultimate goal.

How do you interpret this study? Moreover, what gives you acute bursts of happiness throughout your day?

Each of us has our own little quirks. What are yours? Personally, I prefer numbers divisible by three and eat French fries accordingly. This is not necessarily a good or bad quality, but it contributes to my uniqueness. Sometimes our quirks are highly displayed just like a model parading fashion down the runway. While at other times, we might hide quirks because of shame, fear, or embarrassment. The goal is to embrace your quirks. You may not be ready to bask in your quirkiness, but accepting those eccentric parts about you makes life just a bit easier and fun.