3 Daily Happiness Tools That I Swear By

I'll be the first to say, there have been MANY periods in my life where happiness not only felt far away but something that would trigger me when seeing it in other people's lives.

My "nice girl" identity most likely created a facade of happiness, but inside my mind was a pretty negative place.

I never felt good enough. Or content with where I lived. Or like my job was going great. Or that I had enough friends or the "right" relationship. Life felt like it was never enough.

And with the impossibly high standards, I was setting for myself- I felt like a failure because I often couldn't hit my goals.

When I got serious about healing my eating disorder & exploring personal development, there were a few paramount shifts that moved me into more mindful, happy living.

Here are three of them:

1. Observing my expectations. As I mentioned before- I never felt like I could win or "catch a break". When I started to unpack this more, I realized it wasn't because I wasn't smart or resourced, I simply needed to reset my expectations to an achievable level and build from there. Talk about a confidence boost!

2. Intentionally looking for the good. When I was in my periods of self-loathing, I wanted to pick apart the world. Judging & criticizing everything from a song to a story someone shared gave me a false sense of power, but inevitably brought down my vibe. Today I strive to look for something good in almost every situation (kind of like a game). If "good" doesn't come easy (and there are many times this is true), I ask myself "what can I learn from this?".

3. Creating a life that I love. When I took an honest look at my life, I realized that I'd gotten swept away with so many things that had become "normal", but actually didn't feel great. I started asking myself what I liked, from food to clothes, to where I lived, who I was hanging out with- all of it. And whatever didn't align with the person I wanted to become, I lovingly shifted or replaced it with something that did.

There are far more things than just these three listed that have created more happiness, and I am very much still a work in progress.

These are tools in my kit that I have to practice at regularly. I can feel it when I'm not, or if one area is lacking.

Another note before I wrap up- practicing optimism and happy living isn’t about bypassing tough emotions, creating toxic positivity, or abandoning critical thinking.

If anything it's the opposite.

This practice is about partnering with yourself and your precious nervous system so that you can create space for ALL emotions and decide how you want to respond.

I'm sending you a boatload of boldness. Here's to a glass-half-full week ahead :)

P.S. If your company has a wellness program (or wants to start one!), I have something that might be a fit! In my signature Empowered Well-Being program, I support teams with tools in Intuitive Eating, Body Image Resilience, Burnout Prevention, and more so that employees can live confidently and create more authentically. If you're interested in learning more there's information here. Feel free to use for yourself or forward to a teammate.