How To Be Happy In Life: The 21-Step Plan

The US now holds the 16th position in the World’s Happiness Report 2022, which is 3 places above what it held in 2021! 

These data, although accurate, can’t properly define your happiness. Happiness is more of a subjective matter with infinite perspectives. There answer no single answer to how to be happy in life. Everyone has their own perspective. You might say happiness is a feeling; others might say happiness is a choice. We say it’s both!

You do feel naturally happy in your journey in life. But in the face of adversity, it’s your choice to be happy or not.  Yes, it is true that natural stimuli, which can be either physical or emotional, play a significant role in making us happy. Still, at the same time, it is your choice to get out of bed and go for a walk or even throw out unhealthy food and start eating healthy, which might be your source of happiness.

All that matters is, do you consider yourself a happy person? 

Why Be Happy?

Before knowing how to be happy, take a step back and ask yourself why you want to be happy. 

You might say, to get peace of mind, to be more productive, or to have a better outlook. Whatever your answer might be, all of these positive results are an outcome of improvement in your mental health.

A research published in 2015 by Dr. Gopal Chandra Mahakud and Ritika Yadav in the International Journal of Indian Psychology on “Effects of happiness on mental health” states that “Although happiness is a subjective emotional component still overall all happiness has a positive association with different mental disorders such as stress, anxiety, and depression.” 

Therefore, we can say that understanding the importance of how to stay happy is necessary for all kinds of people, from college students suffering from mental health issues to stressed-out adults and also teenagers.

The secret to how to be happy in life

Until now, you must have gotten a pretty good idea about the importance of how to stay happy. After all, who doesn’t want to stay blessed and happy?  

Although ways to achieve happiness vary from person to person, we can still narrow down some strategies that could enhance your journey on learning how to be happy in life:

1. Get out of your bed

Before starting, ask yourself how to be happy in life by doing exercise.

When we exercise, the blood flow to our brain is enhanced, thereby causing the release of hormones that motivate us like dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, and endorphins. These are the ones that give you that euphoric sensation. 

If exercise seems impossible for you, try getting out of bed daily for just 5 mins and walking out of your house for 5 minutes, you might also use it as an errand to complete. When those 5 minutes don’t seem hectic for you, increase the distance and time very slowly. Once you walk for more than 30 minutes, start stretching and exercising for 5 minutes, and then you know the drill. 

Exercise benefits us physically and improves our mental health by boosting our self-esteem and reducing stress, anxiety, and depression. Studies have shown that it also helps in improving our cognitive ability. So, start exercising and remember always to stay happy and active.

2. Start eating healthy

Eating healthy is a choice. Ayurveda says that good eating habits will always help you stay blessed and happy. There are multiple ways you can start practicing good eating habits. It is important to chew food at least 25 times as research shows that our mind takes 30 minutes to understand that we are full. So you will not end up overeating. 

Increasing the fiber content in your diet helps you maintain good gut health. Eating your vegetables is important and along with it maintaining your micros and macros is also essential. By maintaining a good gut, we will learn the basic step towards how to be happy in life.

3. Change your lifestyle

The first step towards happiness will be by changing your lifestyle. Start focusing on opting for habits that help you, such as:

• following a proper schedule,
• getting a proper amount of sleep,
• starting your day with positive affirmations etc.

These small yet significant habits will help you discover your new self; starting the day on a positive note will freshen up your entire schedule and give you a new perspective on how to be happy in life.

4. Practice gratitude

There is indeed a lot of negativity around us, but why focus on the bad parts? Try to change your mindset and look at things you’re grateful for. Learning to be more grateful is an essential tool because it generates positive energy, making us and the people around us more positive.

Start thanking people, spend quality time with your close ones, and try gratitude meditation, gratitude journal writing, and even gratitude apps.

These positive habits and behavioral changes play a crucial role in your journey to stay happy and blessed.

5. Lean into your relations

A Harvard study referred to as the Grant and Glueck study, started in 1938 and has been continuing for the last 82 years, clearly states that people with healthy and quality relationships tend to live happier lives.

We human beings live for quality relationships; we need to know the importance of people who are around us to learn how to be truly happy in life. Start appreciating the ones around you, cut off all the toxic relationships and make quality relations with those who won’t gaslight you. That’s how to stay happy in life!

6. Practice optimism

When you start looking at things more positively, you can find happiness even in the face of adversity. Perspective plays a significant role in being happy. There might be hundreds of reasons to be happy, but if you are pessimistic, you might still find some reason to be unhappy, but on the other hand, being optimistic can give you happiness even in the worst case possible. So, focus on the way you look at things and stay blessed and happy.

7. Make goals for yourself

When you aim for a target and hit it, there is no happiness like it. Set some short-term mental health goals for yourself and work for them; remember, you might fail, but if consistent, you will complete them no matter what. 

Take a piece of paper, write the goals you want to achieve, and start working on it; you might fall once, twice, or even every time, but there is always something more to learn from your failure. Work on it and see; no one can ever stop you from knowing how to be happy in life.

8. Don’t overburden yourself

All of us have different stress stimuli, whether work or studies. Remember that life is all about balance. One must learn how to schedule themselves in a way that can balance both work and their personal life. It is not good to stress out over small things. 

You should maintain this balance in all aspects of life. Also, remember not to burden yourself with people’s expectations, it is a human tendency to set very high standards for ourselves, but it takes time to reach there; no need to stress out because of it. Understanding this will help you stay happy and blessed in life. 

9. Think but don’t overthink

It is good to think about what to do in life and act according to it, but at the same time, if you overthink everything, it might hamper your peace. Sometimes in life, you need to stop and enjoy it as it is. Don’t chase after perfection. Stressing out about every tiny little detail could make you unhappy. Therefore, sometimes remember in life, you need to take a leap of faith to stay happy and blessed.

10. Accept your mistakes

Mistakes are the ones that carve your learning curve. It is vital for all of us to analyze our mistakes and learn from them. In the course of life, making mistakes is inevitable but not getting demotivated and learning from it is our choice. 

So, get up and start climbing again because in life, you will fall, but the main part is getting up. That should be your mantra to stay happy and blessed in life. 

11. Get a Journal

Journaling has proven that writing helps you sort out your thoughts and makes you more positive toward the world. Letting out your emotion in writing help you clear your mind and fill it with more positivity. 

Journal writing might seem like a lot of work to you initially, but once habituated, you will feel much more positive and happy. Always start with less and then climb towards it. 

12. Meditation is how you learn to stay happy

It is not an unbelievable myth anymore that meditation calms your mind and helps maintain happiness. 

It does seem easy, but trust us, start from just 3 minutes and work your way up. At first, you might feel like quitting but stay consistent. It will do wonders. Our human mind is capable of a lot, and giving it what it needs through meditation makes it release greater potential. Meditation is very beneficial for us, helps us achieve a better mental health standard, and teaches us to stay blessed and happy.

13. Let go of your anger

You must have been hurt a lot of times in life. It is a harsh truth that not all people are kind in this world. But remember, if you are reading this article, you must be one of the kind ones. 

Letting go of your anger and your past is essential for one to truly learn how to be happy in life. Although a difficult task, it is possible. All you need is to be consistent with your growth. Forgiveness is the key to success. Never let anger get the best of you. Always maintain your calm and notice that you are always happy, healthy, and blessed. 

14. Get out of your comfort zone

We all love to remain in our comfort zone! But is it hampering our happiness?

If we remain on the same level for our entirety, we will be miserable and have tons of regrets by the end. If we remain in one place, we will never know that we could be happier elsewhere.

But we can avoid that, and it is our choice! We can get out and socialize more, start developing a skill and become happier than we ever used to be. We will feel proud of ourselves, which will teach us how to be happy in life.

15. Stop the comparison

We all tend to compare ourselves with others in our daily life. Sometimes, we don’t even notice it, but we still compare ourselves in our heads. 

In this world of social media, we often believe the false reality of people and fall into this vicious cycle of self-criticism. But we forget that our main motto is to stay happy and blessed in life! It might not seem like a big deal, but it causes discontent and even decreases self-esteem in people, which leads to mental health problems.

The moment you realize that you are comparing yourself start giving compliments to yourself and look at the positive points in you. Remember every person is unique.

16. Invest in yourself

It is high time for everyone to focus on themselves. We have created habits to indulge ourselves in stressful situations and work consistently, increasing our frustration towards everything.

Get out of your life cycle and look at where you stand! Take some time out for yourself and go on self-dates; enjoy spending time with yourself too. Try to know yourself! You might think you know yourself enough, but that is where you miss the bigger picture. There are infinites within us; we need to explore ourselves. Giving yourself time and investing in yourself is the key to how to be happy in life.

17. Get a hobby

A research published in “The Society of Behavioral Medicine” in  2015 on “Real-Time Associations Between Engaging in Leisure and Daily Health and Well-Being” by  Matthew J. Zawadzki, Joshua M. Smyth, and Heather J. Costigan, B.S, supports the fact that is incorporating new hobbies that one considers fun, has a positive effect on happiness.

Do you feel stuck in a daily life routine and ask yourself how to be happy in life but need something new? 

Find a new hobby! It might be singing, dancing, sports or writing. All that matters is that you indulge yourself in some new hobby. You can feel that endorphin release when you try something new and enjoy it. Being happy is essentially more of your choice, so play around thing. Find your answer to how to be happy in life. 

18. Practice Self-care habits

Self-care is a necessity, and everyone should indulge themselves in it. We often ignore ourselves in this fast-paced life. So all we need to do is take a step back and work on ourselves. Self-care habits decrease stress and make you happier and reduce the risk of mental health problems like anxiety and depression. 

Try practicing self-care habits like journaling, social media break, and various others. Because these things might not look as important now, but in the long run, this is much more valuable than any wealth. These habits are 101 to learn how to be happy in life.

19. Be aware of your mental health

Above all, your mental health is essential. If you are not sure about your mental well-being, you can opt for counseling. But do remember that you should always be aware of your mental health status. Better mental health can assure happiness and peace, and isn’t that what we all want?

Start working on yourself and focus on the betterment of your mental health. Read books on self-care, listen to motivational podcasts and learn more about how to improve your mental health; by this, you can learn how to stay happy in life.

20. Follow your passion

You must have heard people say this all the time. Why? Because when you follow your passion, you will do what you love and are interested in rather than doing something that you know you despise. If you can be happy while doing something, ask yourself, is it worth doing?

Ask yourself, what is it that I am passionate about? What makes me get out of bed? What keeps me motivated? What makes me excited? What is it that I really like to do? And then, my friend, you know the essence of how to be happy in life!

21. Practice selflessness

Focusing on yourself is great but remember, if people around you feel happier, all the negative stimuli will disappear. Selfish acts might make you happy for a while but slowly affect your overall behavioral pattern. At the same time, selfless acts provide one with long-lasting happiness and a kinder place. 

Selfless acts help in connecting broken links of yours with the world. It also helps in easing feelings of loneliness and anxiety.  Try doing something selfless every day; you will notice others start being happy around you and even appreciate you, which leads us and others to stay happy and blessed.

Conclusion

It is pretty clear till now that happiness is both a feeling and a choice; there are hundreds of answers to how to be happy in life, from coloring your house with happy colors to petting your dog. It can be anything you want! 

Staying happy in all adversity is the climax point for you; here, you need to choose, and if you follow all the ways to stay blessed and happy, we assure you no one can stop you.

We wish everyone to stay happy, healthy and blessed always. But, a significant part of being happy depends on your mindset; here are some tips on how to change your mindset to lead a better and happy life.

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