10 Things To Do To Live Happier, Part II

6) Practice acts of kindness every single day. There are so many benefits to doing something kind for someone. The act actually causes serotonin to be released in your brain and in the brains of the people who witness it, so everyone feels better and happier. Moreover, you create a ripple effect of positivity and generosity in that the person who received the act of kindness will then be happier and will likely do something nice for yet another person, who will then do something nice for yet another person, and so on. Do something kind for someone else everyday and you will be a much happier person, and the world will be a much happier place.

7) Avoid social comparisons. Do not compare yourself to others. Envy is poison and a waste of time. You’ll never be happy if you are always lusting over that of another person’s. On the other end of the spectrum, comparing yourself to someone and feeling superior to them is unkind, and only serves to inflate your ego. Focus on yourself and becoming a better version of yourself rather than comparing yourself to others. Focus on and appreciate what you have rather than spending so much time coveting what you do not. In so doing, you will be a happier, kinder, and better person.

8) Have meaningful relationships. Nurture your important social connections. Feeling connected and a part of something is a tremendously important component of both our health and our happiness. (Lonely people have much higher rates of mortality.) Having people with whom you can share your experiences is invaluable.

9) Be present. Only by slowing down and focusing on the present can you notice and savor the many pleasures of life. Life these days can be so overstimulating and stressful that it is easy to forget to appreciate, or even to overlook entirely, the things that bring us happiness. Instead of getting caught up in the chaos, try to be present and take the time to notice and feel grateful for all the joys you witness.

10) Have some sort of spiritual practice, one in which you recognize that there is something bigger than us in the universe. It humbles the ego, but even more importantly, it creates a sense of connectedness with everything around us. Your spiritual practice can take whatever form suits you best (organized religion, meditation, yoga, co-manifesting, etc.); it’s simply the act of having and believing in one that makes people happier.

*Image from The Minimalists