How happy are you? Can you write down five things that make you happy each evening before you go to sleep? What activities provide you with meaning and pleasure? Are you doing them or maybe still looking? Your values can promote happiness and laughter  because you are participating in daily activities that provide meaning. (ie: I love to go for a run, do yoga, pilates and strength train. These bring meaning to me because I value my health. I am motivated to do these activities because I want to be an adult that prevents dis-ease and can keep my health care costs to a minimum.) This sure brings happiness and laughter to my life. Does your job or workplace create happiness and laughter for you? Do you utilize your talent and strengths so you know your work has a significant impact on other people and their life? I enjoy empowering people to be more authentic, helping them create healthy relationships and finding a purpose that makes each day a pleasure to live.....one that fills them with joy, happiness and laughter. Is happiness the ultimate, end result of anything you do? What do you value in life?  

It's summertime, how happy are you? George Ortega will provide you with insight that can change your life, improve your health.

THE ORTEGA HAPPINESS METHOD

I've developed a four part happiness method that is easy to use, and works fast.  The more frequently you practice it, the faster it will work.  

 Value Happiness -- This is the first, very important, part.  The next two parts will require effort.  The more you value happiness, the more you will work at becoming happier.  If you really work at it, you will begin to feel much happier in two weeks, or less.  Aristotle said that happiness is "the best, noblest, and most pleasant thing," "the highest good," and that "we always choose happiness as an end in itself and never for the sake of something else."  Everything we do in life is either for our own happiness or for the happiness of others.  Happiness is what life is all about!

Smile by Nature -- I mean smile as continuously as you can throughout each day.  A closed-mouth "pleasant expression" smile is best.  It is comfortable to maintain for hours at a time, and is easy for those around you to accept and appreciate.  Dozens of experiments have proven that simply smiling makes us feel happier.  James D. Laird, the social scientist who pioneered this research in 1974 found ten years later that the effect works "automatically" for  one half of the population.  He strongly suspects that it is a "learned response," so if you don't immediately feel happier by smiling, be patient.  Soon you will feel the smiling-happiness connection quickly and strongly.

Choose Your Thoughts - This part works for all of us immediately!  Usually our thoughts come to us automatically from who knows where.  If we're lucky, these thoughts are pleasant and bring us happiness.  If we are less lucky, they are less pleasant and bring us less happiness.  Here in the United States we're not very lucky.  Our average happiness level is only 70 percent, and we are happy only about 54 percent of the time.

For this part, all you have to do is replace the "automatic" thoughts you have with thoughts you CHOOSE to have.  During times of the day when your circumstances allow, say to yourself statements like "I feel happy," or "I feel wonderful," or "I feel great."  Say how good you feel in many different ways.  Our minds enjoy variety.  Also tell yourself that you like yourself because the research shows that happiness has a lot to do with our self-esteem.

 Any statement that feels pleasant will work.  Some more examples are "I love my life," "I like my friends," "I like my job," "My children are great."  Try to say more of the "I feel happy" kind of statements than the others because they more simply and quickly create pleasant feelings.

Always stretch a bit beyond what you really believe.  For example, if you believe you are not happy, tell yourself that you ARE happy, and you will soon come to not only believe it, but also feel it.  If you are already happy, tell yourself you are VERY happy! 

Laugh at Will --  Self-willed, or simulated, laughter is useful part of my, and any other, fundamental  happiness increase method because many people seem not to be in touch with deep or strong feelings of happiness.  Although as toddlers we laugh, on average, about 400 times each day, by the time we reach adulthood we are laughing only 7 to 15 times each day.  Simulated laughter, which requires no object or reason such as a joke, seems able to induce a powerful and visceral  pleasure.  As a person gains experience with the stronger feelings of happiness induced by laughter, this deeper happiness will gradually become more accessible during "non-laughter" occasions. 

In 1995 Dr. Madan Kataria, of Bombay, India, popularized the usefulness of laughing "for no reason" and has established over 2,500 laughter clubs throughout the world.   

That's all there is to it!

The more you value happiness, smile (remember...gently) continuously, choose "happy" thoughts, and practice self-willed laughter, the happier you will become.  The more time you spend each day working on your happiness in this way, the faster you will become much happier

How do I know this happiness method works?  I've been researching happiness-increase techniques since 2002, and have used it myself very successfully.                 

Try this simple four part happiness method, and see for yourself how it can make you just as happy as the happiest among us.  After all, aren't they the people we see smiling and laughing a lot, and don't they often seem to be having very pleasant thoughts? This was written by George Ortega and you can go to http://www.thehappinessshow.com for more information about George Ortega, the happiness club and happiness show.

Have you ever thought about the ten things that make you thrive? At the annual Wellcoaches holiday luncheon in the Boston area, Margaret Moore, CEO of Wellcoaches, challenged us to discover and create our "What makes you thrive?" list. We discussed how these things that make us feel exhilarated and confident are the foundation for making us happier. It is about surrounding us with the people who empower us, it is the connections that enhance our relationships, it is our personal effectiveness, it is the beauty we each find in nature, it may be that walk at dusk along the water's edge, watching the light filled blue sky turn to deep hues of blue, it is the support we give to someone in need, it is empowering others at our worksites, it is feeling financially fit, it is being physically capable, it is eating whole foods, it is the joy we feel when we live.....What are the ten things that make you thrive? What is one thing you can do this week, that you can add to your Ten Things that Make me Thrive List, which will empower you to begin finding more happiness each day? You can go to http://www.authentichappiness.com/, fill out insightful questionnaires and have fun discovering more about how happy you really are!         

Did you know you can attract anything into your life? You can attract happiness, health, vibrancy, energy, money and... the list is endless. What do you want to attract into your life? There also are a few phrases that you may have heard of: "what goes around comes around" and you reap what you sow". Do these sayings resonate in your soul? Do you believe the words? When you are kind, generous, happy and helping to uplift someone's life, you are actually doing those things right back to yourself. Amazing isn't it!! Sooner or later it will become part of your own being. Your thoughts become emotions, which become your actions or behaviors, which then become your life situations. If you are truly grateful and appreciate what you are living, right here and now, you will be able to find a positive golden thread that will produce true joy and vitality. You have the privilege and the power to create what you think, which will help you make life-giving choices for yourself. And the life we choose to lead.....isn't it all about our choices we make? So, go ahead and attract the life you want! Do you want to become more personally effective in your life? Can you trust yourself to express yourself feely and joyously? Can you easily speak up for yourself? Are you willing to change and grow?

Self-esteem is a benchmark, a cornerstone of your health. How strong is your cornerstone? Your health is a reflection of the behaviors and habits that you choose to promote. Did you know there are seven common threads that impact your self-esteem? These golden threads, when upgraded throughout your life, will help you flourish, find happiness and live a more fulfilled life. 1. Physical capabilities: Is your body able to meet your daily physical needs? 2. Social connections: Do you act graciously and invite others to enjoy your company? 3. Self-discipline: Are you able to remain persistent when accomplishing a goal? 4. Financial literacy: Do you understand the laws of prosperity and spend, save and invest wisely? 5. Strengths and talents: Can you identify and use your strengths and special talents? 6. Self-trust: Can you trust your own perceptions about what is safe and what is dangerous? 7. Self-image: Do you feel secure about whom you are and the image you project to the world? Start by answering these seven questions from your heart of hearts. How much positive regard and self-respect do you have? Do you feel loved and respected by others? By asking your self these questions, you too can begin to feel fabulous and flourish even more. These questions can help you identify the areas that may need fine tuning and YES, your self-esteem will get the boost you have been waiting to feel.

Are you the master of your own health and well-being? How do you know if you are? Remember each time you can rely on yourself, create connections with others and know you are making a difference in the world... your self-esteem becomes stronger and YOU will become more confident. Feeling fabulous and capable is how to live well and feel great each day. It's simple: success begets success!

Happiness and well-being are the desired outcomes that can be learned from living with integrity. There are three different positive emotions: 1.) ones from the past: satisfaction, contentment, pride, & serenity. 2.) ones from the future: optimism, hope, confidence, trust, & faith. 3.) and two from the present: pleasures & gratifications. Happiness also supports the idea that one's life has started to be authentic. Authenticity is the act of deriving gratification and positive emotion from the use of one's own signature strengths. Happiness comes in many ways and from many places. It becomes our life journey to use our signature strengths and virtues in the major areas of living: work, love, parenting, and finding purpose. Authentic happiness, focuses on experiencing your present, past, and future optimally. Discovering your signature strengths, and using them often in all life activities that are a priority to you and that you value. This is living authentically with integrity and creating genuine happiness.