psychology – HabitHacks https://blog.lift.do The power of small changes to make big results Tue, 23 Jul 2013 01:54:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 https://blog.lift.do/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/cropped-Screenshot-1-32x32.png psychology – HabitHacks https://blog.lift.do 32 32 10 Habits of Happiness https://blog.lift.do/10-habits-of-happiness/ Tue, 23 Jul 2013 01:54:00 +0000 http://blog.coach.me/10-habits-of-happiness/ Read ]]>

Search Amazon.com for books about happiness and you’ll get 33,001 results.

But you don’t need to read a book to find happiness. Here are ten popular and easy habits that can give you a positive boost:

10 Habits of Happiness

  1. Smile: Move your muscles into a smile to encourage the same positive emotions that make you smile.
  2. Write down three positive things every day.
  3. Get enough sleep: Inadequate Zzz’s can wreak havoc on your health and happiness.
  4. Do something for someone else: a positive feedback loop could explain why happier people tend to give more and vice versa.
  5. Spend time with friends and family: social connections affect our happiness.
  6. Express Gratitude.
  7. Eat healthier: one study tied a Mediterranean diet with decreased incidence of depression. There’s even a diet that suggests foods make you happy.
  8. Exercise: physical activity releases endorphins that boost happiness.
  9. Go outside: Vitamin D you’ll get from sunlight exposure increases the feel-good neurotransmitter Serotonin.
  10. And the most obvious one: only you know what makes you happiest. Identify what that is and make it a habit:image

How to Start a Happiness Habit:

Right Now: Pick the easiest habit on this list and do it. I chose #1: Smile.

Then: If you’re on Lift, add a daily habit that makes you happy or choose the more flexible goal Complete Something That Makes Me Happy.

Image© CC Roona-MBH on Deviant-Art 

]]> Habit of the Day: Write Three Positive Things About Today https://blog.lift.do/habit-of-the-day-write-three-positive-things-about/ Fri, 28 Jun 2013 23:00:00 +0000 http://blog.coach.me/habit-of-the-day-write-three-positive-things-about/ Read ]]> We were surprised last year when the Write three positive things about today habit doubled in participants in one day after Lifter Zack Shapiro blogged about it. The habit now has over 1,450 members:

What compelled hundreds of people to add this habit into their already busy lives? Science shows it’ll boost your happiness.

Actively recognizing the positive things in your life increases your longterm happiness.

The father of positive psychology, Martin E. P. Seligman, found that the practice of writing down three positive things a day and why they happened increased happiness and decreased depression longterm in his famous study “Positive Psychology Progress: Empirical Validation of Interventions”:

We… found that two interventions—writing about three good things that happened each day and why they happened, and using signature strengths of character in a new way—made people happier (and less depressed) up to six months later.

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There’s another great reason to start this habit: Write three positive things about today is one of our most supportive communities. There are 1.56 props given per check-in on average.

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How to start building this habit:

Right Now: Think of one positive thing right now and why. I’ll start: I’m happy you read to the end of this post!

Then: Add the Write three positive things about today habit on Lift. Set a reminder for 10pm each night. Get more tips by reading The Happiness Advantage or checking out Zack’s post.

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