Choose Happiness September 15, 2014
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Happiness, Humor, Mindfulness.comments closed
We can choose to be happier by changing the focus of our day-to-day thoughts.
Like any skill worth having, changing the way we look at the world will not happen on its own.
We don’t learn to swim, or speak French, or play golf by wishing we had those skills. We learn those skills by practicing them until we become adept.
If we wish to change our minds, it helps to understand a few key concepts:
1. Thoughts create our reality.
When we dwell on past hurts and frustrations, our thoughts and emotions are apt to be negative ~ sadness, anger, and resistance fill our world. When we count our blessings and envision a positive future, our thoughts and emotions tend to follow suit, increasing the level of our happiness.
Sometimes nothing needs to change but our perspective or frame of reference.
2. We can choose the way we view the world.
Our thoughts are tools which help or hinder us as we journey through life.
When we learn to view the thoughts running through our brains in the same way we view images on a TV or computer screen, we realize we can change the channel any time we don’t like the program being broadcast.
Watching the same tearful melodrama for days (or years) is like watching a sad movie over and over again. Instead of watching stale reruns, we can reclaim the remote, switch channels, and watch more positive and uplifting fare.
Monitoring our thoughts allows us to re-program the default setting on our remotes and trains our brain to broadcast shows that are worth watching.
3. It’s hard to stop thinking about pink elephants.
If we’re told not to think about pink elephants, the image of a pink elephant is apt to appear, front and center. Telling ourselves to stop thinking about pink elephants is an exercise in futility.
Instead, like training a teething puppy, we must give our minds something else to chew on: planning our next vacation, writing out a grocery list, playing Sudoku, making weekend plans.
Better still, we can do something: Read a book. Watch a movie. Fly a kite. Ride a bike. Paint a picture. Take a hike. Send a note. Float a boat. Feed a goat. Dig a moat. Phone a friend.
One of the best ways to distance ourselves from the habit of negative thinking is by distracting ourselves with a dose of positivity.
4. Emotions follow our thoughts, not vice versa.
Think sad, feel sad. Think mad, feel mad. Think glad, feel glad.
As we tune into the ticker tape of monkey chatter racing through our mental corridors, we notice emotions as they arise ~ e.g., a flicker of annoyance. We take a mindful peek at our thoughts to see if they are true, helpful, kind, etc.
If not, as is often the case, we switch channels to a more positive broadcast.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Related post: A Simple Choice
There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world.~ Robert Louis Stevenson
Spirit Lights The Way 