The art of happiness may be elusive to some, but research reveals relationships have the power to transform your life and make you happier than ever before. If you do nothing but learn how to spice up relationships, you can master happiness.
The Enormous Benefits Of Happiness
The benefits of happiness are extraordinary. Happy people are more resistant to pain, they bounce back more quickly from illness and are more tolerant of life's bad breaks. Not only do happy people enjoy life more, but they tend to live longer and have more fun than people who rank low in happiness.
In studies of trauma victims, happy people developed fewer trauma symptoms than unhappy people. And fewer happy people developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Who Qualifies
Who should be concerned about their level of happiness? Everyone! Even a happy person can learn to be happier, and reap more benefits by applying basic happiness strategies to his/her life.
By learning the art of happiness you can be more successful, too. Guess what? Happy people are more successful than unhappy ones, and bring a special passion to their work... a passion that clearly shines like a big bright aura whenever they walk into a room.
Tap Into Your Relationships
The art of happiness begins with your relationships. How do you tap into them? Simple steps go a long way... let's go over a few.
1. Pay more attention to your relationships. Start by assessing the quality of your relationships, taking note of the especially good or healthy ones... ask yourself what you could do to make each relationship better. Little things can spice up a relationship, like sending a card or stopping by a friend's house for a surprise visit.
There is hardly a greater compliment you can pay someone than giving him/her your undivided attention. People love receiving attention. Just giving someone your full attention makes them feel good.
Ignoring someone has the opposite effect!
2. Now earmark those relationships in need of attention. When I coach people to improve their relationships, I begin with a thorough relational assessment, that helps us to identify neglected relationships, and we often work on those first.
But you can start without a formal assessment, prioritizing the relationships in greatest need.
3. Decide what to do for each relationship. Let's say you decide to focus on two neglected relationships. You plan on calling one person and offering to take him/her out for a cup of coffee. And you decide to call the other and apologize for your long silence. Now what you do and say when you meet each person is absolutely critical. You may want do a good job of catching up and listening with the first, and speaking from your heart with the second. The art of happiness entails honesty and direct communication.
4. It pays to spell it out. Say the words you need to say to bring the relationship back into the light. Saying that you have missed someone, or you want to keep in touch more often in the future can help, but you have to be prepared to follow-though on your promises, too. Don't get busy and forget about the person right after you meet with him/her! That leads us to the next tip.
5. Stay in touch! Do something nice for your friend every day or once a week. Program the sending of a little reminder of your affection into your computer or phone.
Most people love to receive greeting cards, so I buy or make quite a few and send them out on special occasions... and when they least to expect to hear from me. I've noticed some of my friends keep their cards for months, often displaying them in a prominent place.
Sending a surprise card to your spouse can work wonders, too!
6. Be MORE positive in your relationships and LESS critical. Say positive things, and find the silver lining in every cloud... people will want to be around you! Staying positive is a critical skill in putting the art of happiness into practice.
7. Avoid blaming others for problems; just get busy solving them, and keep your head up. No one has to take the blame. Everyone can be part of the solution, and you'll solve more relationship problems.
8. Have fun doing everything. Bring a playful spirit to your relationships.
9. Wield a sense of humor... it will make you happier and more successful. Play and laughter can really spice up a relationship. Cultivating humor will provide you with a powerful stress tool and keep your spirits up. It will endear others to you. Use a sense of humor lovingly with the people you love.
10. Grow your gratitude. Recent research has shown gratitude can reduce depression and help overcome negative mental states. People who express gratitude and develop a habit of being more grateful are happier and healthier. Gratitude is one of the world's greatest healers, and will help you to solve many relationship problems.
Tweaking or enhancing your stronger relationships can be done by keeping in touch. All you have to do is give a little extra effort to the relationships that are going well. You can deepen, improve or strengthen any good relationship. You probably already know what to do for each one, you just haven't found time to do it! You'll be surprised at how quickly you see improvement in even your most damaged relationships, once you begin to bring some extra attention their way. As you can see, the art of happiness is all about spicing up your relationships!
Overcome Fear
Fear can be a monster that gobbles up happiness. Besides the lack of time, the lack of courage keeps people from doing what they know they should do, such as taking steps to make a relationship right that's gone wrong. Happy people don't let the fear of rejection or loss of approval keep them from taking action. Say what you want to say. Put your heart out there.
Your heart is your secret success weapon.
Never shy away from expressing gratitude, compassion or love. Research shows how acts of kindness and love make us happy and fulfilled, give meaning to our lives, and enable us to build bridges to the stars.
In Sum
Paying more attention to your relationships, staying in touch and speaking from your heart are simple, but effective ways of improving your relationships... and finding greater success in your life. Being more playful can spice up a luke-warm romance. Laughter is a wonderful tool for building happiness and joy in your relationships.
Invest in your relationships and you'll soon master the art of happiness... and you'll create a great future... an exciting future built upon the solid rock of a successful and joyful life.
Richard Hamon is a professional coach and therapist with over 30 years of experience. Richard helps people to solve their relationship problems, enjoy truly extraordinary marriages and find exceptional success in all areas of their lives.
You'll find all kinds of articles on how to spice up your relationships and lead a happier life at Richard's website, Happy-Relationships.com. Find out about therapeutic services and personal coaching programs to assist you in quickly reaching your dreams and goals. Discover eBooks and other products to assist you in your journey, such as a free relationship quiz to help you assess your relationship.
For more information on conducting state-of-the-art relationships, the latest research on true happiness, and Richard's products and services, please go to: http://happy-relationships.com
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