When posed with this question, it’s easy to reach for the ‘big’ things. Happy memories such as your wedding day, your child being born, maybe a fantastic holiday when you’d hit your goal weight and for once felt super-confident in that itsy-bitsy bikini.

But what about every day happiness?

What ignites that little spark of serotonin in your brain or what gives you the dopamine hit that keeps you coming back for more?

Don’t we deserve to feel happy in at
least some small way each and every single day of our lives?

Given that most of us don’t own our own island (here’s looking at you Mr Branson) or can earn a month’s wage for one Instagram post, we need to look for the minutiae
– the small things we can appreciate in our day to day lives. Our very own ‘moments of sunshine’ that
make our life that little bit brighter
.

Look for the small pleasures

If you have a roof over your head and your basic human needs are being met, you have reasons to be happy. If you and your loved ones are in good health, that’s another a reason to be happy.

In addition to these basic needs, as human beings we crave more layers of happiness. Sometimes when we seek them, we can find pleasure in the smallest things in our day.

For example, some things that make me happy right now include:

  • the sound of my daughters playing and laughing together;
  • that first cup of coffee in the morning;
  • a random phone call or text message from my husband during the day, ‘just because’;
  • my heated blanket (it’s winter in Australia as I write this);
  • warm fluffy blankets, socks or dressing gown (see reason above);
  • my dog welcoming me home each and every time as though I haven’t seen her in a month;
  • stretching and moving my body – feeling your blood pumping through your veins gives a sense of vitality like nothing else;
  • stepping outside and feeling the cool air against my skin and watching my baby’s face change in awe of this new experience;
  • that feeling when the kids are in bed and you can settle down for a cup of tea and an episode of The Good Place bed;
  • cuddling my husband and kids;
  • reading;
  • listening to an audiobook or podcast;
  • listening to music;
  • playing the piano;
  • getting a good night’s sleep (a rarity around here);
  • the smell of my favourite perfumes;
  • watching the ocean…

Make each day special

There are so many small things that can make a big difference to how my day goes and how happy and fulfilled I feel as a result. While I don’t experience all of these things every day, they are the little moments that can transform a mundane day into something a little more special.

Challenge

My challenge to you is to list out at least 20 things that you can do on a daily basis that can add to your sense of gratitude and happiness. I’ll bet it’s easier than you think! You can even share a few in the comments below to give
others some inspiration.