Lately I have been getting many responses to the "High" video labeling me as the Happiness Guy. As I am honored and blessed to receive such a label and know the video points towards that conclusion, I can tell you that this inner joy expressed is backed by extreme effort, awareness and incredible discipline.
Look around the world as a whole, most of us are fighting for something, whether it is a cause or just plainly our survival, there seems to be some form of struggle and I know, at least from my experience, that any form of struggle, resistance or fight is not usually backed by a smiling face and the lightness of joy in the heart.
I look around at the revolution uprising and wonder how many people out there marching for change have found the peace in their own heart that is required to make a lasting change, internally and ultimately externally. Now I am not one to say that this is right and that is wrong, this is a very dynamic world we live in and we all are here starting our own revolution in every moment that we step out into the world. The revolution that I like to stand for is the inner revolution, the one in which we find the depth of our inner happiness and we go out into the world and "Give Our Love Until The Fear Runs Out."
Now, I am not saying that we should ONLY experience happiness in our lives, no no no, that would be extremely boring. My deep rooted emotions are what make me a dynamic person and I would never give them up for the world. I just feel there is a lack of true joy and an overabundance of stress and resistance, so, time to tip the scales and do a little balancing act.
So how to create lasting happiness in life? Well, funny enough, it is a moment to moment choice. Every morning when we wake up we get a knock at our minds door that says, "Hello, I am happiness, I here to hang hang out if you will only let me into your life." And usually, within the first few hours or even moments in my case, the demands of our life, our mission, our OUTER stresses close that door and we somehow think we have found our home in stress. So we talk about it, release it in healthy and unhealthy ways, and have a few fleeting moments of joy that come and go based on some outer world circumstance that triggers some connection that we have made to a joyful experience of the past or some projected joy we foresee in the future.
Well, what if, just what if, we could simply be present in this moment and be completely submerged in HAPPiness. Well, to start, we are going to need a Happiness Generating Toolbox, so in those times of stress and resistance, which come quite often, we can look in our box and pull out the most suitable tool (action or Nonaction) to bring us complete happiness so that we can go back into the PLAYGROUND we call life and be JOYfull about the experience. So, if you want to experience more joy in your life, then here is my offering of tools to achieve just that.
This is what makes up MY Happiness Generating Toolbox:
Become Aware of the sensations in the body (my favorite - can use anytime, anywhere and will bring a deep sense of joy - you might want to do a Vipassana Course or some other course like it to establish this sensitivity, but once it is there, it never leaves)
Become Grateful (I have started a group on Facebook entitled Gratitude 365 where you can visit, post and read about gratitude, it may be a nice place to start)
Jump up and Down While Looking to the sky and smiling - If you don't feel joy doing this then might as well call it quits! This brings up so many happy emotions from childhood, concerts from youth and moments of dance, sure fire bliss!)
Meditate - when I simply follow my breath in and out for a few minutes, it brings joy back to the present moment in which our nature of joy and happiness already exist.
Go For a Walk In Nature - Connecting with nature always has a lasting effect on our state of mind.
Music - Give in. My Latest Favs include Matt Kearny, Of Monsters and Men and yes, Full Moon Rising :)
Watch a Comedian - Give in. Actually Comedians saved my life from Depression in 2006 and there have been countless stories of people whom have saved themselves from various diseases by simply putting on some comedy and laughing. And FUNNY enough, I think most comedians comedy is what saves their life.
LIsten to Favorite Spiritual Speaker - Something always triggers inspiration and joy in me. My favorites are Wayne Dyer, Tony Robbins, Eckart Tolle, Marianne Williamson, David Deida, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Osho and the list goes on and on - these people are quite the comedians as well.
Get Lost in a Book - Taking our mind off the stress for a few moments gives some perspective and allows the mind to get creative again which always brings happiness.
Take a Deep Breath and Hold it as Long as I Can - be careful, you might burst into laughter filled with tears when the light headedness begins to creep! :)
Laugh - :)
Go Vert - A headstand or some way of getting fresh new blood rising to the head always brings a sense of freshness and joy.
Sun Salutations - Surya Namaskar - if you don't know what that is, just ask a anyone on the street, most people nowadays know it, google it, take a yoga class, this 12 step Yogic Posturing brings blood soaring through the veins and leaves you filled up with Love, peace and yes, happiness!
This Too Shall Pass - Remembering these words occasionally works, not active enough for me, but sparks good thoughts, but mostly that is the memory of a great friend whom used to say this too me all the time.
Don't Take Myself so DAMN SERIOUSLY - This usually bubbles me up with a smile
Be Around a Child - I dare you to attempt not to smile in this scenario! :)
Call a Good Friend and LISTEN - Sometimes a simple act of kindness, service or being there for someone you love will give such a deep sense of joy that all the world becomes like a happy pot of bliss for hours after the interaction. This can be coupled with helping someone in the market, a person in need on the side of the road or any number of kind acts that we have opportunities to do at many moments of the day. Get out of yourself and get into happiness.
Sing - Even if you think you cannot sing, it will make you laugh and if you think you can, then it will just make you peaceful and full of bliss.
Cold Showers - Here in the East, where I currently live, this is a major tool for lasting joy. It has the ability to raise every happy cell in the body!
Exercise - If you have ever done it, well, you know!
Watch a TED Talk - Inspiration = JOY
Yell - This one could have reverse effects, but has worked at times in the past.
Do Something Crazy - Again, could have opposite effect depending, but most of the time worth the risk, one of my favorites to break a stressful pattern is to just spontaneously dance wherever you are. You could even do the "High" dance if you like!
Get a Message - Well, Yeah!!
Send a Positive Email Thanking Someone Daily - mmmmm, always works.
So, there you go, my list of favorites, some are obvious, others are more obvious and others are duh, but life is about repetition, and just by reading this I trust that something may have sparked to take a bit of action and cultivate a little more HAPPY HAPPY in the days, we all need it, need to share it, and need to feel it, it is our nature, just check out some childhood picts. :)
Please take a moment and share what makes you happy. This Toolbox is not even partially full, I intend to fill it with more and more goodness as the days go on, because, truly, I love being Happy, in a happy state and sharing that TRUE happiness with others, if lifts me up, fulfills me and makes me HAPPY to be alive.
I wish you all the happiness you could ever dream of enjoying and am HAPPY if this post served you in any way.
With love and gratitude
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4 comments:
wonderful!!!
Rachel Goodley fro Facebook: As I am walking though a field right now I decided to jump and look at the sky. Then I realized I wasn't jumping.... I was skipping. That is another tool.... Skip! How can you not feel contentment and joy when you are skipping!?! Another one: find a playground and swing! With the sky above you, the ground below you and the breeze in your face.... You will feel the happiness of an innocent child. I often times find myself on the swingset only to look around and realize I am the only adult there (to play). Embrace your inner child.
Rachel Goodley again from Facebook: dance in the rain- or just dance, splash in puddles, walk barefoot in the grass/mud, roll down a hill, get dirty, smell/pick wild flowers, soak up some sunshine (in a physical element, vitamin d is essential to our happiness), look though a kaleidoscopic, play hopscotch/jump rope, make a mud pie (don't eat it! :P)..... the list is infinite! For me, when i begin to feel disconnected- the most useful tool i have is nature!
Drink lots of Water!
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