How to Cultivate Happiness: Feed Daily

No matter how well you’ve planted the seeds for happiness and removed the weeds, you must feed daily to keep happiness thriving in your life. Here are five ways to do this:

1. Be curious

Stay open to new ideas by reading and listening to inspirational, entertaining and informative material. There is much material available to you online, in your local library and many other places.

One such place to spark new ideas is Springwise This company has 80,000 spotters around the globe looking for inspirational ideas for entrepreneurs. Maybe one of this ideas will spark a new venture in your mind.

2. Be sociable

Get off the Internet for a while and hang out with other people near you who share your interests and are engaged in activities you enjoy. One place to start is Meetup.com, the world’s largest network of local groups. Search for groups in your interest area and locale, or start one if you wish. I belong to several Meetups in my area and assisted my daughter in starting one.

3. Be giving

Donate to charities and agencies in need of aid, but also give of yourself. It feeds your happiness and spreads it to others. One way that some are giving of themselves is through couchsurfing.org, the largest hospitality exchange network in the world. Through CouchSurfing travelers make connections with others in the local communities they visit. You may participate by meeting a visitor for coffee when they are in your town or host them if you wish. The photo above shows a couple who stayed with us for three days on their long road trip from Canada back to their home in South Korea.

4. Be positive.

It is said that we have about 70,000 thoughts per day. If it is true that we attract what we think about, then we must selective about the thoughts that permeate our minds all day.

The thoughts in your mind won’t control circumstances outside of you, they just determine how you react to and are affected by those circumstances.

One way I stay positive is to talk to other positive people, listen to motivational and inspirational audio and live programs, and most of all, begin and end each day with positive affirmations and prayer. For weekly tips that will help you stay focused on positive, be sure to subscribe to the Color Your Life Happy Newsletter.

5. Be proactive.

Insist on doing things you enjoy. Don’t get so caught up in working that you neglect engaging in what you find enjoyable.

Be resourceful and creative about it. If you enjoy gardening, for example, but seem to be short on time once you arrive home, then bring live plants into your office or workplace. An added benefit according to some studies is that live plants help purify the air, create soothing effects and help reduce work stress.

Using these ideas daily will help feed and maintain your happiness.