5 Little Ways To Be Happy

Hello, lovelies!

I've been having a really great week so far (and at the time of writing this post it's only Monday, so that's saying a lot), and I've just been so much happier overall this year. I know a lot of you also struggle with things like anxiety and stress like I do, so I thought I'd share just a few little things that can help make your day brighter.

(If you want to see a similar post to this that I wrote last year with more happy things, click HERE.)

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1.) Take a hike

Over the past few months, I've been training for a two week-long trip to Israel at the end of May. It's going to be brutally hot there and we'll have to cover around twelve miles a day, so I've been going on long hikes to make sure my legs can handle it.

There's something just so freeing about breathing in really crisp air and pushing yourself to the limit to climb to the highest hills and do it faster than before. I often find myself looking at my feet when the path gets a little rocky, but then I'll look up and just gasp because the sky is so blue or the trees around me have made the scene so beautiful.

And maybe super crazy hard hikes aren't your thing, but anything that gets you outside absorbing sunlight is really going to help put you in a better mood. Even if you just want to set up a hammock and read a good book in the shade, it's always nicer to have fresh air than just sitting inside all day.

2.) Call someone

We live in a time where so many people are just content to Snapchat, DM, and solely text other people. And while I think texting is great and fine, it's nice to have a phone call every once and a while. A lot of my friends get EXTREMELY nervous about talking on the phone, and I used to feel the same way until I started calling people regularly.

There's something so nice about hearing someone's voice on the other end of the phone after a long day, or even after a really lovely day. It's really hard sometimes to detect someone's tone over a simple text, but when you can hear them talking it makes it really easy to pick up on the little inflections in their voice and the emotions behind it.

So call someone. Be it a best friend or a family member or someone special, just hearing their voice is going to make it better. It'll be almost like you're talking to them in person, and I think it's just a much more personal way to communicate with someone.

3.) Hugs!

I am a huge hug lover.

I used to be a little bit more shy, but as I've gotten older I've realized it's just so nice to have someone give you the biggest hug in the world. I'm sure there's some kind of deep psychological reason for why we like hugs so much, but I just like to think that hugs = happiness because you just get to hold someone close that you care about.

(On a side note, if you're gonna hug someone, hug them tight. No one likes a wimpy hug.)

4.) Be honest

Now, this works in two ways.

I think you should be honest with yourself, and with other people. What I mean by this is that you should take time every day to just think about things you like about yourself. If that means you have to look in the mirror and just tell yourself that you like your eyes or your smile, then do it. There is nothing wrong with loving yourself, and if it seems arrogant to say that you like things about yourself then I'm here to tell you that that's not true. Giving yourself some self-love is great, and it only goes to arrogance if you use it do put someone else down.

Also just be honest with someone close to you in the sense that you tell them something true and lovely about them. If you like the way someone is always confident, tell them so! Give your hilarious friend a thumbs up for being their witty self, or tell your smart brother that you're glad to have him around.

Life is hard enough without all the negativity that often gets passed around, so spread a little positivity. I promise it'll bring a smile to someone's face.

5.) Smile as big as you can (trust me, this works)

You know that "fake it till you make it" saying? I've always heard that if you just smile it'll make you feel better, and I always thought that was made up and that it didn't really work. But smiling and laughing is one of the biggest ways to turn a day around, and I honestly think there's no better feeling than being with your loved ones and just laughing like nothing else matters.

Even if you're feeling super down, just read a funny blog post or watch a video from your favorite YouTuber. The act of just putting your mouth into the shape of a smile will start to make you feeling just a little bit happier the more you do it, and if you can make yourself laugh and have a genuine smile come forward, that's even better.

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Well.

Hopefully this post helped you bring some sunshine to your day no matter how it was going. Being happy isn't like a switch that you can just click on and off, but I think just purposely doing little things every day to keep a positive mindset is a good way to start.

That is all.

Cheers,