The Five Simple Habits of a Happy Life
Today's post is PACKED with million-dollar advice to help you achieve your goals for a happy, healthy life … no matter what goals you've got.
You may have noticed that I’ve recently focused much of my writing this month on the subject of habit building. As many of us are trying to get back to "normalcy" after the coronavirus pandemic, I feel the subject is important.
Even if you weren’t personally affected by the virus, I'm sure the quarantine period threw your routine off, too.
Most of us were home a LOT more, our everyday schedules were completely different, we probably were eating different food, and there was also a lot of stress.
And though some of that pressure has faded, the struggle remains.
While doing research for this post, I poked around online … and I found an overwhelming amount of info on success habits. WAY too much, in fact!
You might be surprised a how many different articles I saw outlining the 30 different habits you need to be successful, or the 20 must-have habits, or even 50 or more!
That is a LOT of habits. Who has time every day for all those extra habits?
I chuckled at all the unnecessary complexity because I genuinely believe the simpler and more streamlined you make things, the more likely it is that you will stick with them.
So let me just say that you do NOT need 50 habits to be successful. Or even 20!
Instead, I want to highlight just five simple habits that will help you reach... almost anything you want in life.
These five habit ideas come from Jack Canfield (one of the greats!), who created the Chicken Soup series of books. I highly recommend checking him out.
The first habit is to BELIEVE IN YOURSELF and BELIEVE in what you can achieve it.
When you’re starting something new or going after a big goal, it can be difficult to believe you can bring it to fruition.
But you can .... You can accomplish practically anything you put your mind to, as long as you put in the work to make it happen. And doing the work is totally under your control!
The second habit is … HAVING SPECIFIC GOALS.
Have you noticed that successful people are always working TOWARD something? Your brain thrives on this type of living. Having something specific set as your goal helps give you focus and drive.
However, what distinguishes your goals from fanciful dreams is that real goals have an intention and a deadline.
So, instead of launching into a vague goal like, “I want to run a 5K,” you could re-frame that into something more specific like, “By September 1st, I will be able to run a 5K.”
The third habit is … GOING THE EXTRA MILE.
In business, this is called over-delivering. It’s giving your clients more than they signed up for, or going above and beyond on the work you’re doing for your boss.
But the principle works perfectly in your favor when applied to your health and fitness, too ...
In this case, doing "extra" could be holding a plank for a few seconds past the moment when your mind tells you it’s too hard, and you want to stop. Or perhaps it’s choosing to jog those additional 50 steps to the next mailbox before quitting.
Going above and beyond could also mean following through on your commitment to eat more veggies by then doubling up on your dinnertime servings of broccoli.
However, #4 is my FAVORITE.
The fourth habit is … SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE TAKE ACTION.
Nothing will happen unless something HAPPENS … and for that to occur, YOU have to take ACTION. You have to DO SOMETHING.
Taking your first couple of steps toward life's uncharted territory can indeed seem daunting, but it’s also exciting!
You’ll never run that 5K if you never take a step. You’ll never write that book if you don’t start writing. And are you looking to lose weight? You never will unless you take action to make it happen!
Believe in yourself … Trust in what your body CAN do ... set a goal … go the extra mile … and TAKE ACTION. See how these are all building on each other?
This leads to the fifth habit of highly successful people …
THEY SHOW APPRECIATION.
They are grateful for the process, and they take time to thank those who have helped them along the way.
Life is a journey. And, you have a choice in how you feel about the journey toward achieving your goals. You can feel negative and resent it, or you can feel positive and grateful for the opportunity to evolve and create a change.
However, if you express appreciation and have gratitude, the journey becomes a bit easier and more fulfilling.
So, there you have it:
Believe in yourself
Set a goal with a deadline
Go the extra mile
Take action
Show appreciation
Which one is YOUR favorite?
What are YOU working toward now? What goals are you setting? Tell me about them in the comments or DM me on Facebook. It’s always inspiring to me to hear what you are doing!
