{"id":19517,"date":"2013-09-22T19:54:37","date_gmt":"2013-09-23T03:54:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/?p=19517"},"modified":"2013-09-23T03:23:26","modified_gmt":"2013-09-23T11:23:26","slug":"instantly-happy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/instantly-happy\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Instantly Be Happy"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/p>\n

“I am determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may find myself. For I have learned that the greater part of our misery or unhappiness is determined not by our circumstance but by our disposition.” ~ Martha Washington<\/strong><\/p>\n

Happiness simply put is a state of mind that is free from pain, unpleasantness and\u00a0suffering.\u00a0You feel good.<\/p>\n

We\u00a0are all striving for happiness but unfortunately\u00a0few of us attain it.<\/p>\n

We live in a privileged society, you’d think we’d be grinning ear to ear, all the time, no?\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

But the reality is\u00a0that it\u00a0seems we are\u00a0leading desperate lives of mild dissatisfaction.\u00a0 Jumping between short bursts of happiness and long periods\u00a0of neutral or unhappy moods.<\/p>\n

I can prove this is true.\u00a0On your way home tonight, take a look at\u00a0everyone driving around you.\u00a0You’ll discover\u00a0mechanical\u00a0beings\u00a0possessed by vacant stares and scowls.\u00a0Usually mixed with a flicker of confusion and\u00a0sadness.<\/p>\n

Honestly it’s watching World War Z, I thought I’d entered the zombie apocalypse.<\/p>\n

It scared me a little.\u00a0Then I took a moment to tune into my own presence and I shockingly realized that\u00a0I was a zombie too, lost in my own\u00a0mind with a slight determined scowl on my face.<\/p>\n

What’s going on?<\/em><\/p>\n

I don’t want to be this way and my guess is neither do you.<\/p>\n

I decided to take action on the notion that\u00a0I\u00a0can make\u00a0the choice to be happy. I am in complete control over this.\u00a0The choice is mine alone.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

So I decided to smile.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Its not complicated, you turn the corners of your mouth up, your cheeks\u00a0raise and your eyes crinkle.\u00a0You are happy.<\/p>\n

It is normally a spontaneous reaction, but we can fake it, for now<\/em>.<\/p>\n

We can usually recognize a fake smile, the smile is crinkling the mouth but not the eyes.<\/p>\n

But even if your smile is fake research suggests that there could be\u00a0happiness benefits.\u00a0It might not come from an internal happy feeling, but it might produce a happy feeling.\u00a0This is opposite to how we normally look at happiness.<\/p>\n

Research also\u00a0suggests that smiling reduces harmful stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol and increases hormones such as endorphins.\u00a0 Blood pressure is reduced, a sense of peace and well-being develops and simply put, you just feel happy.<\/p>\n

Studies have shown that those who smile frequently tend to live longer healthier lives.\u00a0 Smiling will also influence the way others view you; you will be seen as polite, likeable and courteous.<\/p>\n

These benefits all appeal to me, so while driving to work I sat up straight, felt the wheel under my hands and the vibration of the car.\u00a0 I\u00a0opened up the window, took a breath of fresh air, and smiled<\/em>,\u00a0and guess what, I instantly became happy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

When you understand how happiness works, there is no point to being unhappy.\u00a0 Ever.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This isn’t an easy state of mind to obtain,\u00a0and\u00a0it’s possible that only a small collection of people will ever reach this state of enlightenment, but we can all\u00a0work towards it and hopefully in the process enrich our lives.<\/p>\n

We can choose to\u00a0accept that to live means to suffer.\u00a0 There will be\u00a0experiences that we deem as unpleasant,\u00a0but like happy times, these un-pleasantries are impermanent.\u00a0 They too shall pass.<\/p>\n

We don’t have to let\u00a0every emotional feeling\u00a0disrupt our inner peace.\u00a0 We can develop a positivity about life where events and experiences have no grip over us.\u00a0 We don’t have to scowl, we can choose to smile and brighten our own day and the day of everyone around us instead.<\/p>\n

This understanding allows us to live freely and lightly.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most us drive, its a perfect opportunity; leave a sticky note on your dashboard.\u00a0 Smile; it’s contagious, lets put an end to the zombie apocalypse.<\/p>\n

Tina is a student of Buddhism, meditation and yoga.\u00a0 She writes about cultivating happiness through mindfulness at her own blog:\u00a0Barefoot Beginnings.<\/a><\/em>
\nTina lives near cottage country in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two dogs.\u00a0 Also a vegetarian and animal lover she enjoys photography, travel and nature. But mostly she\u2019s just a free spirit trying to follow the path.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Happiness simply put is a state of mind that is free from pain, unpleasantness and suffering. You feel good. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12163,"featured_media":19520,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[32,6],"tags":[4642,4641,637,66,4629],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Instantly Be Happy - Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Happiness simply put is a state of mind that is free from pain, unpleasantness and suffering. 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