It is easy to see why being happy is such a challenge these days. People work on jobs they hate, find it difficult to pay bills and live in a world increasingly isolated and digitally directed. And this lack of happiness has real consequences beyond the simple feeling of dark: when you are unhappy, you are less productive and less stable, and this feeling of helplessness can quickly become a rut that is difficult to get out. And happiness leads to greater stability and productivity, which leads to even more happiness.
There are steps you can take to get out of the cycle. Some are physical – enter more in nature, obtaining more exercise or socializing with people in person – but you also have the most powerful engine of happiness in the universe in your head. You can use your own mind to make yourself happier, although it is important to note that although these tips can help anyone to reset their perspectives and to raise your mood, they do not substitute for therapy or formal medications.
Pay attention to what you like
Feel depressed maybe a vicious circle: you feel sad or not motivated, so you jump for activities that make you happy. Friends invite you to go out, but you are not in a mood, so you stay. You have a day off, but you feel too slow to get involved with hobbies that bring you joy. By trying to break this cycle, we tend to focus on eliminating negatives. Instead, you should try to increase positive points.
Studies have shown that you can treat happiness as a muscle. A strategy called “sensitivity to reward” means actively remarking positive emotions and taking the time to savor them. If something makes you happy, even momentarily, take a moment to record and catalog the feeling. Then look for it again. Being aware of what makes you feel good and push you to relive this experience can train you to be happier in general.
Use the “behavioral activation” technique
Research has shown that a cognitivo-behavioral (TCC) therapy skill known as behavioral activation can help us be happier. Depression and misfortune can often become a vicious circle – we stop doing things that make us happy because We are depressed. This can manifest as an avoidance: if you opt for a racing raised your mood reliably, you find reasons why you cannot go run right now – it’s too hot, you don’t have the right clothes, there is not enough time for your usual route. Avoid this pleasant behavior even makes you more Unhappy, deepening the cycle.
Behavioral activation is a technique where you do these pleasant activities even when you don’t want to do them. You might not appreciate this specific race (or do the laundry, or engage with hobbies) this body, but simply by constantly engaging in this behavior that your mood will improve. If you are starting to plan activities that should bring you joy, you can “train” your mind to be happier in reality.
Challenge your critical thoughts
We often fall into depression because we repeat negative messages on and for ourselves. If you are constantly criticizing, it starts to look like the natural state of things. A tip that can do wonders is to question this negative perspective by forcing you to defend your position – a process called Socratic interrogation. If your position is that you suck and you will never get what you want in life, challenge these thoughts asking you to provide facts that support your perception, how others could see you and how you would react if someone else told you that they felt the same thing. By contesting and questioning your negative thinking, you can delete part of its power.
What do you think so far?
A socratic interrogation has been studied in the context of a therapist questioning, but there are also workheets that you can use to try this technique for yourself.
Use the “one minute rule”
For a quick mood booster, try the one minute rule: identify the tasks and tasks that you can do in a minute or less. These will be simple things, such as storing something, responding to a text or packing an article to return. Because these tasks are quickly accomplished, they take relatively little effort to engage, but the feeling of accomplishment is often the same as for larger and more complex tasks. By engaging in the one minute rule several times a day, you are training to feel this feeling of accomplishment and to internalize its positive effects. In addition, the effects of the rule are tangible – you can see your office becoming cleaner, your reception box is organized, your life is rationing.
Compassionate
Compassion – Empathizing with someone else’s suffering and seeking to help – can be learned, and studies have shown that people who “practice compassion” towards others are happier and more resilient. There are also evidence that runs this inward and practice self-Compassion has a direct relationship with your happiness. Although it may initially seem silly, write a note or give you a support speech as if you are talking to your best friend can have a real and powerful impact on your happiness. Practicing self-compassion can also include treatment of yourself, offer you little nice.
Being unhappy and depressed often leads us to be self -criticism, by constantly castigating ourselves for our shortcomings. Reverse this script and constantly remember how great we are to recalibrate our thought, leading to more happiness.
