Happiness Hacks

I thought that today, we would debunk the idea of happiness. I’m not saying that I’m the end all, be all, and I know everything about how to be happy. However, I do feel like a question I often get is, “Angie, why are you so happy?” That’s not to say I don’t have moments of freak out, anger, frustration, or sadness, because those things do happen. Overall, I’ve been able to shift my life quite a bit to find a level of happiness, and I want to share my secrets with you. Let’s call them “happiness hacks!”

1. Gratitude

Something I do every single morning in my planner is write out a couple of things that I’m grateful for. If you can’t think of something you’re grateful for, or you’re not feeling the feels that day, then write out something you’re excited for. This is one thing that has helped me tremendously.

Can I just give you a dose of tough love right now? No matter how hard you might think your life is right now, there is someone that would give everything to switch places with you. Whatever you’re going through, you’ve got this! In order to recenter yourself, I think it’s incredibly powerful to think about what you’re grateful for and experience the shift it does for your mindset.

You can write down anything. It can be your spouse, the roof over your head, the fact that the lights are on in your house, the fact that you have running water, etc. On the days where I feel like I don’t have anything to be grateful for, those are the things I write. I have a roof over my head in a warm home with electricity. Another go-to is that I’m grateful for my husband, Andre, and our dog, Carl. Other times, I’ll just write down some things I’m excited for. Take a moment to write yours down now!

2. Health & Movement

By health and movement, I don’t necessarily mean being fit AF and having a six pack. Something I’m realizing as I’m getting older is that the more I move my body in an intentional way, take the time to sweat it out, and most importantly, stretch it out and breathe, the happier I am. When you move your body, you’re ultimately letting out any frustration you might have been holding in. It has nothing to do with how my body looks, but it’s interesting that my body responds to how my head is thinking. Your body will achieve what your mind believes. When we’re at our most stressed/upset/angry, we tend to gain weight. That’s not just because we’re plowing our face with chippies. I believe that is because our bodies almost go into distress and say, “what are you doing to me?” If you are a happy, calm, centered human, I’m telling you, the weight will come off that much easier.

What I personally do is wake up and go right to my workout area, press play on my workout, and sweat or stretch. On days that I’m not working out hard, I’ll just do yoga or take a walk.

3. Progress

The last and most eye opening thing for me is progress. I’m talking about forward movement, not just in terms of moving your body, but movement in your goals and life. Even if I move forward half an inch, or just one millimeter, no matter what it is, I will feel happy because I’ve made progress. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: progress equals happiness. If you think back on any time that you’ve felt really sad or unhappy, chances are, there was zero progress happening. When you start to see growth in your life and feel like you’re improving, you will be your happiest self.

What is one small thing you can do today that will move you closer to the goal you had set at the beginning of this journey? Get that little “oomph” toward your goal! Check back in with yourself tomorrow on how much happier you feel about taking that small step forward.

Short and sweet, those are my happiness hacks! Implement these practices into your life, and I promise, you will be a happier person. If you have any happiness hacks of your own, I’d love to hear them in the comments!