19 May Happiness is…finding something that elevates you!
Happiness for me…is closely tied to music. I love music, and when I listen to certain types of music and certain times or in certain places I feel an incredible sense of positive emotion, a positive emotion we psychologists call elevation. There are times when I’m listening to music, especially live music, when my happiness is such that I’m almost brought to tears.
But this blog posting is not simply about music. It’s about finding something, anything, that creates the same positive and motivation emotion in you; because the feeling itself is incredible, but more than that, the feeling leads to positive actions which lead to success and productive outcomes which then cause more happiness and…well, you can create a positive, self-reinforcing cycle in which positive emotions lead to positive behaviours which lead to positive outcomes which make us feel good and then the cycle continues around and around!
So what causes you to experience that particular type of happiness we call elevation? Is it music, like me? Or is it exercise, art, reading, nature, social interactions, stretching yourself beyond your comfort zone, learning something new…or something else entirely?
Whatever it is, find it and do it as often as you can. Because the benefits are enormous and you’ll realise gains in all other areas of your life.
PS: As you can see below we’re encouraging you not just to read these blog postings but also, to get involved in the “conversations” we have within our Facebook community. So click on the link below and find this posting and let us know what activities or triggers cause elevation in you.