The Happiness Project

Have you heard of The Happiness Project? I am sure you have, it seems everyone has read it. I am a bit behind the times but read it recently and loved it.

I am not one for “self-help” books, and while this is exactly what the book is, it is not at the same time.

And by that I mean it doesn’t shove things down your throat, tell you that you need to do X, Y, and Z to be happy. It shows you how the author went about finding happiness and what clicked for her.

I had a couple of ah-ha moments but the one that has stuck with me is the need for “gold stars.” Gretchen talks about how she does certain things in the hope that her husband, friend, relative, etc. will notice and give her the gold star of approval that she craves. When she actually is doing things to make her life easier and make herself happier. When you change your mindset while doing something such as organizing your closet, and remember that you are doing it to make your life easier in the morning, not just for your significant other to thank you, it becomes much more fulfilling and you are much happier.

So simple, and yet such a big change in my happiness!

Also she made monthly goals or resolutions to focus on each month. Another thing I am trying to incorporate into my life.

Have you read The Happiness Project? How do you try to make yourself happy each day?