With all that’s going on in the world today, and in your own world, do you sometimes find yourself feeling down? Overwhelmed? Wishing there was a way to feel happy, joyful, fulfilled?
Me too. That’s why I was thrilled to be inviewed recently by Authority magazine for its interview series “Finding Happiness and Joy During Turbulent Times.” They’re talking with experts, business leaders, authors and mental health professionals who share lessons from their research and experience about how to find happiness and joy during troubled and turbulent times. And boy, aren’t those the times we are living in. You can read the interview here.
To a large extent, your happiness is in your own hands
In the interview I was asked about the topic of finding joy and I shared how, when working with a certain healthcare client, I was introduced to the extraordinary research being done on the nature of happiness, well-being and joy. This led me to the work of Sonja Lyubomirsky, particularly her books The How of Happiness and The Myths of Happiness, and I learned a great deal about how much of our happiness is in our own hands. She teaches us that we can actually manage our minds to create a life filled with joy, if we want to and if we try to. Powerful stuff!
So how do you find joy when everything around you is pulling you down? Here are 5 ways.
In the interview and also in a video, I share my list of 5 things you need to live with more joy and happiness in life. They work for me, my husband, my friends and many of my clients. I invite you to see how they might work for you, too. (Watch the video here.)
- Take the complex and make it simple.
- Practice gratitude every day.
- Perform acts of kindness.
- Visit the people who matter to you.
- Find your purpose.
Reach out to others and that connection will bring joy, to them and to you
When asked how to help support someone who is feeling down, my answer was to reach out to them, either with a phone call, a note, a text or what I have found so satisfying, a Zoom call. Several women colleagues and I formed a Women’s Thought Leaders Luncheon Group where we come together and share our stories. The power of simply seeing each other’s faces, even remotely, for an hour a month and hearing that we are doing ok, working at our jobs and living with pleasure is all we really need to smile ourselves.
My wish is that all of us, in whatever ways, big and small, can seek and find joy, every day. Keep smiling!
From Observation to Innovation,
Andi Simon, Ph.D.
Corporate Anthropologist | Author | CEO Simon Associates Management Consultants
Andisimon.com
Info@simonassociates.net
@simonandi
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