Happiness Hacks

Sure, your work is pretty satisfying, but you still want recognition for those big accomplishments and milestones. Draw the fame you desire by using the law of at- traction. Before you retire for the night, take five minutes to clear your mind. Focus. Use your imagination to create a scenario in which you are receiving accolades, praise, and ovations. Now add emotions to your imagined scene. Concentrate on your feelings and mood as you listen to the words others are saying about your achievements. Your subconscious doesn’t know real experiences from imagined ones—according to the law of attraction, you just have to believe the experience can be yours and then supercharge it with emotion in order for it to manifest in your life. Let those happy feelings permeate your dreams and your subsequent time at work.

Your boyfriend walks out on you. Your dog dies. Your new car is totaled by a tree limb. Your boss announces layoffs and your name is on the list. Some days, it seems that nothing goes right. But change is certain, and things can and do get better. Think of two ways your life could change in positive ways! A new partner walks into your life . . . with dogs. Your new job comes with a car. Life is good and you are on top of the world. Relish the thought! 

Lugging a big suitcase around wherever you go can cause more than one kind of headache—for one thing, most airlines now charge a fee to handle checked bags. Traveling light makes more sense than ever! Purchase basic travel clothing that is lightweight, wrinkle free, and washable, in neutral colors like black and tan that can be dressed up easily for any fancy occasions during your trip. Pack less, travel light, and avoid the headaches.

According to happiness research, friendships have a bigger effect on your happiness than your income does. Companionship stimulates your brain’s attachment and social group circuitry, both of which help you feel safe and loved. According to a survey by the National Opinion Research Center, on average, the more friends you have, the happier you are. Furthermore, friendship itself lights up your brain in all the right areas. In October 2010, researchers at Harvard University found that brain areas associated with calm, familiarity, and happiness would respond more strongly when people were thinking about a friend versus a stranger with similar interests (such as a work colleague). If you can’t see your friends, at least think about them. 

When you focus on what you love about your life, your positive emotional brain fires up. This creates a focused, positive feeling free of worry and fear, a state of mind that allows you to truly enjoy moments of happiness. Before you go to sleep each night, write down at least five things you’re grateful for and pause to re- experience the pleasure each one brings you. Focus on what is making you feel lucky and good about your life, and you will soon find that you feel more positive in general and that you begin to slow down and savor the good times. 

It doesn’t take a genius to know that sex can make you happy. For most people, having sex creates pleasurable feelings that (hopefully) lead to orgasm. An orgasm provides the biggest blast of legal, naturally occurring dopamine available to your brain. After scanning the brains of lucky volunteers who were experiencing orgasms at the time, Dutch researchers likened their brain scans to scans of people experiencing heroin rushes! 

Learn the art of savoring something: choose a pleasurable experience and slow it down. Let’s say you’re taking a walk. Along the way, stop in your tracks and slowly take in a panoramic view of your surroundings. Pause to smell a flower or pet your neighbor’s dog. Stop occasionally to slowly breathe in the fresh air and feel it replenishing your lungs. Allow the scents of the season to revive memories of happy days in your past. Or spend a half hour truly listening to your favorite music, lingering in a bath, or massaging your partner. The point is to luxuriate in whatever activity brings you physical, mental, and emotional pleasure.

If you want to have a good attitude and feel happier about your life, then make sure you get good sleep. Your body needs it! Without sufficient sleep, sleep researchers say, your mental function becomes impaired: for example, insufficient sleep can negatively impact your daytime performance, causing lower levels of energy and duller thinking. Inadequate sleep has serious consequences. Certain regulatory systems and important organs continue their vital work while you sleep—in fact, researchers have been able to pinpoint parts of the brain that actually increase their activities when subjects are asleep. Getting adequate sleep enables you to wake up refreshed, energized, and in a good mood.

Take your vacation days—they’re good for you! One study found that the risk of suffering a fatal heart attack decreased in middle-aged men who regularly took an annual vacation. Even so, roughly a third of Americans who have accrued vacation time don’t take all the time they are allotted. Vacations can restore the balance be- tween work and the other areas of your life by providing relief from the relentless pressures of work commitments, schedules, and deadlines. Even if you don’t travel anywhere, take some vacation days to just hang out, sleep, and rejuvenate yourself. Then you can return to work feeling happy and recharged.

If you want to be happy, then don’t harbor a grudge. Holding on to anger, resentment, and hostility hurts you, psychologically, emotionally, and physically. Even if the incident happened only yesterday, the person you are mad at may not even remember the incident, so what’s the point in continuing to be angry? Don’t give up your power to have positivity in your life just to harbor a grudge. Find a way to move past it. Take an anger management class or read books offering specific strategies for dealing with anger issues. Take good care of yourself—love and respect yourself enough to let go of a grudge.