Let’s talk about Happy lists! Happy lists are simply short and sweet, take no time at all and are completely adaptable to whatever you feel like doing when you open your notebook with your lists in.
In their purest form, happy lists are precious little bundles of inspiration that just happen to come in many different flavours. Here are some ideas I have used so far, to help you start off your happy-list collection:
- Listing down all the good things in your life – a gratitude list
- Things you are excited about right now – new ideas and happy thoughts that are top of mind
- Fresh and new ideas you want to try out
- Your current life-goals
- An actual happy list of things that are making you happy right now
- What would you add to your happy list?
Start creating your own happiness. If you are waiting for someone else to make you happy, you’re missing out. Smile because you can. Choose happiness. Be the change you want to see in the world. Be happy with who you are now, and let your positivity inspire your journey into tomorrow. Happiness is often found when and where you decide to seek it. If you look for happiness within the opportunities you have, you will eventually find it. But if you constantly look for something else, unfortunately, you’ll find that too.
Make a list of your favourite small, simple pleasures, and then plan to include them in your day-to-day life.
It could be getting up early to watch the sunrise, having a cup of tea, heading for a gentle stroll along the beach, feeling the sun’s warmth on your skin, or snuggling under the blanket on a cold evening with a book.
As you can see it’s not a ground-breaking list, but remembering all the little things I enjoy really does put me in a good mood. This in turn helps me feel positive about the future and reminds me of all the small things that I can do at any time. Deliberately undertaking these little moments will fill you with happiness and help any stress melt away.
Here are a few more ideas:
HAPPY-LIST
- Feeling good about de-cluttering and being minimal
- Having admin, paperwork and financials up-to-date
- A clear kitchen counter and spacious fridge
- Using things up in the kitchen and bathroom
- How I feel when I am pottering and organising
- Having spa time after dinner with a face mask and moisturiser
- Writing a new blog post or recording a new podcast episode, getting excited by all my ideas
- Cooking new recipes
EXCITING IDEAS
- Doing a one-day retreat at home: research retreats and design it for me
- Calling my to-do list ‘exciting projects’ instead
- Being feminine in everything I do
- Sipping hot tea and perusing my style files for a break
- Having a ‘week of no guilt’ – I choose what I want to do
- Taking my time to do things
- Letting my life be easy
- Suspending thought and relaxing my body
- Letting go of the past
My final example (below) is a little pep talk I wrote to myself:
“I love being organised! It fulfils a great need in me – for order, peace and calm. I shall always make time to tidy up, put things away, tidy loose ends, keep tasks up-to-date, declutter, use things up, make space, organise my surroundings and generally have my home and life ‘exactly’ the way I want it to be. That is a promise to myself.”
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