Be in Your Happy Now Day 6 of 12 Days of Holiday Joy

The quality and experience of your holidays and life in general are directly related to how you think. If you want to have a magical holiday season and a magical life, focus on mastering your mindset and then everything else falls into place. How you think determines your perception, therefore your reality. So if you want to change your reality, it starts with your thinking. During the festive holiday season, it is likely that your activity level will increase. Falling into thinking traps becomes so easy when you are busy and distracted. You might forget to do the things that keep you grounded and centered like exercise, writing in a journal, meditation, deep breathing, and rest.

When you step away from your center, ego takes over. Suddenly, you are insulted and angry because people don’t say thank you, or the person in line ahead or behind you is rude. You feel like your colleagues don’t appreciate you. You forget that people are human and not perfect. Your happiness dips and you may slide into overwhelm.

You can choose differently. You can choose the happiness lifestyle.

Here are some tips to boost your happiness:

• Communicate clearly. Ask questions. What are the family members’ plans? What do they want to do? This year, many people are using Zoom to include family members. Send everyone the link. Let people know what time things start. If you are traveling to someone’s home, let them know when you will arrive. Be clear about presents (are you doing a gift exchange? etc). Bring a gift for the host.
• Ask for help. Delegate tasks. Hire Help. If you are not the host, offer sincere help.
• When things go wrong, take a pause. Take a deep breath in and out. Think before you speak. Turn on some music to help shift the mood.
• Keep asking yourself, how can I make this simple? Can you make something ahead of time? Can you order it from somewhere?
• See the humorous side of things. When you laugh instead of getting uptight, you release tension.
• Ask, yourself, is this my business? Most of the time, it’s not.
• If you are the recipient of unwanted advice or criticism, you can practice the pause and let go of a defensive response. You can even laugh it off. Don’t be so easily offended.
• Make “I am flexible”  and “I choose happiness” your mantras.
• Manage your self-talk. Notice your inner voice or inner critic. Switch that around. If you find yourself saying, “How could I make a mistake like that?” Switch it to “I am human. I am lovable. It’s okay that everything isn’t perfect.”
• Hit your thought reset button when you feel like you are off your inner game.  This starts with a pause, and then you can even mentally or actually say, “I reset. I choose to think…(fill in the blank)”.
• Practice compassion for others and yourself. A little love and understanding go along way.
• Do a body scan and notice muscle tension. When you notice tense muscles, stretch and mentally say, “Relax, let go.”
• Stay grounded. Do the actions that keep you centered. Make time for these. If you normally write in your journal for 30 minutes, even 5 minutes will help. If you exercise for an hour normally, and you only have 10 or 20 minutes, it will still help you.
• Stay connected with your positive people in your life. Connect with your dear friends, Facebook groups, etc. Scroll right by those negative posts on social media or even snooze those that constantly complain.
• Remember that you are not responsible for making other people happy. Each person is in charge of his or her own happiness.
• Choose a charity and donate time and/or money.
• Write a daily gratitude list in the morning. This practice will get your happiness mindset revved up.
• Practice affirmations

Journal Prompt: How will I practice a happiness lifestyle today?

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Happy Holidays,

Sheri Kaye Hoff

Coach, Trainer, and Author, Sheri Kaye Hoff, is a Business Coach known for inspiring massive action and a catalyst for personal and business growth, joy, and profits in a way that is fun, relaxing, and fulfilling, Sheri inspires people to do the work they love and make more money. Sheri helps business owners and professionals to relax into success. She uses both spiritual and practical techniques to obliterate blocks and create dramatic change. She is a business, leadership, happiness, and inner game expert. She has overcome nearly dying, and the loss of her brother at an early age. She has made it her life mission to discover the keys to happiness and success and then share them with her clients and community. Learn More About Sheri