If you're a great salesperson, find ways to streamline your administrative tasks and get in front of more customers. Everyone has at least a few things they do incredibly well. Find ways to do those things more often. You'll be a lot happier. And probably a lot more successful in whatever way you choose to define success. It's easy to focus on building a professional network of partners, customers, employees, connections, etc.
But there's a definite payoff to making real not just professional or social-media friends. Increasing your number of friends correlates to higher subjective well-being; doubling your number of friends is like increasing your income by 50 percent in terms of how happy you feel. And if that's not enough, people who don't have strong social relationships are 50 percent less likely to survive at any given time than those who do. That's a scary thought for loners like me. According to one study, couples who expressed gratitude in their interactions with each other experienced increased relationship connection and satisfaction the next day -- both for the person expressing thankfulness and no big surprise the person receiving it.
In fact, the authors of the study said gratitude was like a "booster shot" for relationships. Of course the same is true at work. Express gratitude for employees' hard work, and you both feel better about yourselves. Another easy method is to write down a few things you are grateful for every night. One study showed people who wrote down five things they were thankful for once a week were 25 percent happier after 10 weeks; in effect, they dramatically increased their chances of meeting their happiness set-point.
Happy people focus on what they have, not on what they don't have. Begin your journey. Change direction. Create new dreams or rediscover dreams you left behind. Photo by varun suresh. Dona is a writer, reformed marketing workaholic, and single mother of two teenage boys. She is exploring who she is and what she loves one day at a time. This site is not intended to provide and does not constitute medical, legal, or other professional advice.
The content on Tiny Buddha is designed to support, not replace, medical or psychiatric treatment. Please seek professional care if you believe you may have a condition.
Before using the site, please read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Click to opt-out of Google Analytics tracking. Though I run this site, it is not mine. It's ours. It's not about me. It's about us. Your stories and your wisdom are just as meaningful as mine. Click here to read more. Cummings At twenty-five I was happily married and had a great career, many friends, and lots of money. And when we use them effectively, we feel alive and comfortable in our skin. They help us find joy in our being and happiness in our design.
So embrace your strengths and choose to operate within your giftedness each day. If you need to find this outlet outside your employment, by all means, find this outlet. Accomplish one important task. Because happy people choose happiness , they take control over their lives. Instead, they operate out of the satisfaction they have already chosen. They realize there are demands on their time, helpful pursuits to accomplish, and important contributions to make to the world around them.
Choose one important task that you can accomplish each day. And find joy in your contribution. We are spiritual, emotional, and mental beings. We are also physical bodies. Our lives cannot be wholly separated into its parts. As a result, one aspect always influences the others. For example, our physical bodies will always have impact over our spiritual and emotional well-being. Therefore, caring for our physical well-being can have significant benefit for our emotional standing.
One simple action to choose happiness today is to eat healthy foods. Your physical body will thank you… and so will your emotional well-being. Treat others well. Everyone wants to be treated kindly. But more than that, deep down, we also want to treat others with the same respect that we would like given to us. Treat everyone you meet with kindness, patience, and grace. The Golden Rule is a powerful standard. It benefits the receiver. But also brings growing satisfaction in yourself as you seek to treat others as you would like to be treated.
Find time alone in solitude. As our world increases in speed and noise, the ability to withdraw becomes even more essential. Studies confirm the importance and life-giving benefits of meditation.
So take time to make time. And use meditation to search inward, connect spiritually, and improve your happiness today. Search for benefit in your pain. This life can be difficult. People who've recently had an awe-inspiring experience are also more likely to say they feel more curious about the world around them and to act more generously toward others. They don't call it "Central Perk" for nothing. Several studies have even found a connection between caffeine consumption and a reduced depression risk, as well as an even a lower risk of suicide.
However, at least one of these studies specifically found this connection with caffeinated coffee but not tea, though others found the same effect for tea as well. You don't have to be Don Draper to reap the benefits of some peace and quiet. Multiple studies suggest that meditating — focusing intently and quietly on the present for set periods of time — can help lessen feelings of depression and anxiety.
While it's possible that people with such brains might be more likely to meditate in the first place , other studies do show that people who complete a meditation program tend to show brain changes linked with self-awareness, perspective, and memory. Stressed out?
Head for a forest. One study found that a group of students sent into the trees for two nights had lower levels of cortisol — a hormone often used as a marker for stress — than those who spent the same two nights in a city.
In another study , researchers found a decrease in both heart rate and cortisol levels in people in the forest when compared to those in urban areas. If living in a big city has you feeling a bit down, there's good news: A brief walk in nature could be all it takes to chase away those negative thoughts.
At least that's the finding of a new study published last month. In the study, a group of 38 Northern California ns 18 women and 20 men were split up into two groups — one who took a minute walk in nature and another that did the same walk in the city. The nature walkers reported having fewer negative thoughts about themselves after the walk than before the walk, while the urban walkers reported no change.
What's more, fMRI brain scans revealed less activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex sgPFC , a brain region that may play a key role in some mood disorders and has been linked with patterns of negative thought, according to the study.
Those who went on the urban walk did not show any of these benefits, the study found. Experiencing positive emotions not only appear to have the power to neutralize negative ones, but can also encourage people to be more proactive. Visiting a museum or seeing a concert is yet another way to boost your mood. A study that examined the anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction of over 50, adults in Norway offered an interesting link: People who participated in more cultural activities, like attending a play or joining a club, reported lower levels of anxiety and depression as well as a higher satisfaction with their overall quality of life.
So get out there and participate! Happiness is entirely subjective, meaning that what makes one person happy might affect someone else differently.
However, listening to sad music seems to be a common activity that's been linked with increased happiness around the globe. For example, instead of setting a goal like "save the environment," try to recycle more. Those two examples were tested on a group of volunteers in a study published last year.
The people in the second group also reported a lower overall sense of personal happiness from completing their goal, the scientists report. Ever heard someone say, 'If you're angry at someone, write them a letter and don't send it'?
While that might seem like a waste of time, science reveals recording your feelings is great for clarifying your thoughts, solving problems more efficiently, relieving stress, and more. A team of pyschologists recently hit on a neurological reason behind why this simple act might help us overcome some emotional distress.
The researchers studied brain scans of volunteers who recorded an emotional experience for 20 minutes a day for 4 sessions. They then compared the brain scans with volunteers who wrote down a neutral experience for the same amount of time.
0コメント