45 Ways to Have a Happy Life

Life is great. At least, I think so!

As I was putting my room together, organizing boxes, reading through old papers, and putting up pictures, I noticed a piece of paper I've kept since my senior year of high school. In Adult Roles, I learned so many applicable lessons, and this paper was my favorite takeaway from that class.

Mrs. Leavitt gave us a paper entitled "Great Recipe," and it's just that: a great recipe for a great life. I read through this paper every now and then, and something different seems to jump out every time. So without further ado, here's some life advice:

 Great Recipe

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Talk to God about what is going on in your life. Buy a lock if you have to.
3. When you wake up in the morning, complete the following statement, "I am thankful for __________."
4. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
5. Eat plenty of green and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts.
6. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
7. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead, invest your energy in the positive present moment.
8. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.
9. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
10. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
11. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
12. You are not so important that you have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
13. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
14. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
15. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
16. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"
17. Forgive everyone for everything.
18. What other people think of you is none of your business.
19. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
20. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch!!!
21. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
22. Each night before you go to bed, complete the following statement, "I am thankful for __________."
23. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
24. When you are feeling down, start listing your many blessings. You'll be smiling before you know it.

Plus a few more I added from my experience... 

• Go to the temple regularly. However often that is.
• Have a picture of the temple in your room.
• Have a picture of Christ in a few places: your room, your car, your wallet?
• Thank Heavenly Father for your trials. He trusts us enough to give us these hefty things to deal with.
• Say a gratitude prayer every so often: don't ask for anything, just say thanks. Try setting a timer, too. (I tried it for 15 minutes once... a lot easier than I anticipated!)
• Tell your parents you love them.
• Talk to your mom. Tell her about your day.
• Send a nice text to someone you haven't talked to in a while.
• When someone makes you angry, try seeing things from their situation.
• Change the radio station to uplifting music every so often.
• Celebrate the small moments.
• Make a memory. YOLO.
• Do something awesome, however small, every day.
• Relive something from your childhood.... play Nintendo? Play a board game.
• Do something completely out of your comfort zone.
• Instead of sitting in silence (on the bus, before class, etc), talk to your neighbor. I dare you to find something mutual between the two of you!
• Learn how to say no. You don't have to say yes to ever single thing.
• Go buy ice cream and eat it straight out of the carton.
• Find a reason to be happy, rather than a reason to be unhappy.
• When you're given a bad situation, make the most out of it.
• Shorten your time on social media.

Keep running.