Happiness is a Choice

Alexander Draghici is a licensed Clinical Psychologist, CBT practitioner, and content writer for mental health websites. His work focuses on strategies for preventing anxiety and depression. One of his videos explains how to create a 7-minute habit of planning your day. In this habit, you will focus on what is important to you. Whether it's a new job or a simple habit, happiness is a choice.


Count your blessings
Counting your blessings can be challenging for some people. To get started, try paying attention to your loved ones and their talents and abilities. You may find that you are better at translating other people's words than you are at recognizing your own. It may even help to have a list of your blessings. By doing this, you will increase your happiness. Counting your blessings can be a practice that will help you meditate and experience more joy in your life.

Practice gratitude
Cultivating gratitude can be done at any age. It is a proven technique for improving mood, fostering more positive relationships, and transforming the way you view yourself. You can begin cultivating gratitude today by setting aside a few minutes a day to reflect on the good things in your life. You can also practice mindfulness to bring awareness to moments of gratitude and sit with those feelings. In a 2021 study of 133 people in China, researchers found that those who practiced mindfulness daily experienced greater life satisfaction.

Avoid negative talk
If you're looking for ways to boost your happiness and boost your self-esteem, try not to overanalyze every single conversation. Instead, try approaching the mean inner voice as a friend and interrupting it. This practice resembles the Golden Rule, the idea of treating others as you'd like to be treated. You'll feel better when you speak to yourself as if you were talking to a friend instead of a critic.

Meditate on compassion
The first step to cultivating an attitude of compassion is to know that others are also looking for the same things in life. If you wish to see happiness in the world, it's important to know that you can choose to be compassionate. Practice compassion every day. People who are compassionate to others are happier, and vice versa. You can learn this attitude from observing others' behavior. Meditation is an art, and it takes practice to make it effective.

Avoiding negative thoughts
When you think about your internal dialogue, you will notice that about 35% of the time, you're thinking negatively. Regardless of the reason for these thoughts, it's best to remember why you're doing what you're doing. By focusing on the end result, you'll be more likely to stay happy. In fact, studies have shown that there's a 3:1 ratio of positive to negative thoughts in people with good mental health.


Practice mindfulness meditation
People who practice mindfulness meditation for happiness experience many benefits. It can help you change negative experiences into positive ones. Mindfulness meditation has also been proven to help with anxiety. During this technique, you learn to recognize your thoughts and change them for the better. As a result, you can be more comfortable with yourself and your reactions to things that happen around you. Here are three reasons to practice mindfulness meditation for happiness. These are common misconceptions about the benefits of meditation.