4 Ways to Tune Into Joy
Did you know that HAPPINESS consistently ranks at or near the top of polls when people are asked about what they want in their lives?
Yet connecting to that feeling of contentment, to absolute joy can feel elusive. We know it’s there, we see others experiencing it, but we’re not…
So how do we access joy?
1. “Joy is here because you are here.” -Dr. Robert Holden
What this means is that we ACTUALLY carry joy. Whether we believe it or not, joy is our innate nature.
And in truth, we desperately want to be in that state all the time.
Did you know that happiness consistently ranks at or near the top of polls when people are asked about what they want in their lives?
Yet connecting to that feeling of contentment, to absolute joy can feel elusive. We know it’s there, we see others experiencing it, but we’re not…
So how do we access joy?
Here are 4 ways:
1. “Joy is here because you are here.” -Dr. Robert Holden
What this means is that we ACTUALLY carry joy. Whether we believe it or not, joy is our innate nature. And in truth, we desperately want to be in that state all the time.
You can think about joy as a vibration, a frequency we tune in and out of like a radio station. Joy is always there, we simply move the dial away from it.
2. Joy is not a destination
Joy isn’t some place you’re going to get to or arrive at. Joy isn’t a goal to achieve either.
Sometimes we believe we can experience joy with a new purchase, a vacation, promotion or treatment. And maybe we're happier for a few days, but invariably, it wears off and we slide back to where we were before.
But what if, instead, you chose to believe that joy was your true nature? That joy is always here, waiting for you to remember and return to it?
If you’re finding that idea difficult, imagine you’re watching a bunch of kids playing in the park directly in front of you. You hear their laughter and squeals of happiness. As adults, most of us have forgotten how to access this. We get busy, neurotic, we live in our heads and take life seriously.
How can you laugh like a child again?
3. Practice Gratitude
Gratitude is called the shortest shortcut to happiness.
Why?
Think about it.
How do you feel when you’re in a place of lack? When it feels like you don’t have everything you want, need, or desire?
You’re in a bad mood, right?
Instead, what if you focused on all the blessings you have in your life? A healthy body, family, a job, a comfortable home?
Offer thanks for everything you have in your life right now.
“Thank you for my beautiful home, my healthy family, my caring friends, my strong body, reliable car, fun job…”
It isn’t that happy people are grateful, it’s that grateful people are happy.
Acknowledge and appreciate the abundant blessings in your life and watch yourself tune back into joy.
4. Be the most joy filled person you can be
Why? Because the number one indicator of how happy you’ll be in the future, is how happy you are right now.
So how can you be happier right now, in this moment?
If you can release yesterday, avoid worrying about tomorrow, and simply be present right here in this moment, you will discover joy. It is nestled deep inside you because it lives in your heart, patiently waiting for you.
Breathe into that space in the center of your chest and re-connect.
It has never left.
It is always available.
What small actions can you take to help you experience that deep inner joy, right here, right now?
If you want to deepen into this state, podcast #74, entitled, TUNE INTO JOY is for you.
Try it here:
No matter what your life circumstances, joy is always here for you. And the more you cultivate it, the easier it will be for you to access.
Because joy lives within you, no one will ever be able to take it away from you. That is the power of inner work.
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Photo by Petra on Pixabay
3 Ways To Have More Gratitude in Your Life
Of all 52 weeks in the year, this is the one when Americans reflect the most on gratitude.
It’s hard not to when you sit down at a beautifully decorated table, in front of a mouth watering feast that typically includes a succulent, roasted turkey, creamy mashed potatoes, candied yams, piping hot green bean casserole, chestnut stuffing, cranberry sauce… hungry?
Gratitude, just like delicious food, fills us up. Only it fills our souls not our bellies.
If you’re ready to use Thanksgiving as a springboard to deepen your gratitude practice, here are 3 ways:
Of all 52 weeks in the year, this is the one when Americans reflect the most on gratitude.
It’s hard not to when you sit down at a beautifully decorated table, in front of a mouth watering feast that typically includes a succulent, roasted turkey, creamy mashed potatoes, candied yams, piping hot green bean casserole, chestnut stuffing, cranberry sauce… hungry?
Gratitude, just like delicious food, fills us up. Only it fills our souls not our bellies.
If you’re ready to use Thanksgiving as a springboard to deepen your gratitude practice, here are 3 ways:
1. Attitude of Gratitude
Normally, when we think about gratitude and applying it into our lives, this is what we do.
Having an attitude of gratitude is all about appreciation for the things in your life. Many people make lists of what they’re grateful for. Yours might include: a reliable/new car, your job, family, health, etc. Perhaps you’re also grateful for the glorious sunset, an incredible piece of music, that sweet parking space!
Typically, adopting this attitude is a reaction, a response to life.
It’s choosing to look at the blessings you have in your life rather than all the things you don’t have or wish you had.
2. Philosophy
If you want to go a step further, you can adopt a philosophy of gratitude. This becomes like an orientation, a way of experiencing life.
In a way, it’s a change of prepositions. It’s going from “to” to “for.” Here’s what I mean.
Most people believe that life happens to them. If this is your mindset, it’s easy to feel like a victim. You lost your seat on the bus. Your co-worker gossiped about you and now you feel awkward in the office. You can’t seem to land the job of your dreams.
When you change the preposition, it shifts the perspective. Life happens for you.
What opportunity has life brought you to learn and grow?
When we shift into thinking that the goal of earth school is to learn, then everyone and everything that happens is an opportunity for growth.
Now, when a conflict arises say, with someone at work, you can ask: What is the lesson in this for me? What do I need to learn?
Think about a person or situation that created conflict for you and look at it through this lens. How was it asking you to grow?
Was it about speaking your truth? Being in integrity? Asking for what you deserve? Setting healthy boundaries?
Adopting a philosophy of gratitude helps us experience thankfulness for our lives.
3. Identity
The last and deepest place to go with gratitude is the notion that you can embody gratitude. That gratitude is you.
Think about these three attributes like layers. The attitude of gratitude is like the frosting, the outer shell. It’s how we begin to re-orient and see the world - by actively choosing what we focus on.
As you incorporate that “seeing” more and more into your life, then it evolves into a philosophy, a way of life. You see how every thing and everyone is an opportunity for growth and you have thanks for the learning.
Deepening your philosophy and moving through life with this new orientation, gratitude gradually become who you are until you’re actually identified with gratitude. Now gratitude is at your core level and it radiates out from you because it is you.
It’s the recognition that you are what you seek. It’s the celebration of life and the awe and wonder of being alive.
I am grateful to all of you and I wish you a happy and healthy holiday week and a beautiful Thanksgiving! Enjoy!