10 Ways to Feel More Joyful (In Any Season)
Clearly, my daughter thinks the way to be more joyful is to sing Christmas carols every chance she gets.
Or perhaps I should say Christmas carol. She only knows one.
The truth is, as much as I love the big picture of my life, my daughter will tell you I sometimes get a little … serious. And for someone who’s already pretty busy doing what she wants to do, the holidays can be a distraction I’m not always as grateful for as I should be.
But you know, that Christmas carol eventually won me over. Joy is contagious. And so I’d like to pass some along to you, just without the singing.
Here’s what I’m doing to bring more joy into my life, now and hopefully year round.
1. Be well rested
About a month ago, I asked my Facebook followers how much sleep they were getting each night. The post exploded, generating 347 likes, comments, and shares from sleep sufferers around the world. Many were only getting 3-4 hours a night on average. And I know what that’s like, because I use to be one of them.
For years, I would wake up in the middle of the night–I’d hear a noise or have to go to the bathroom–and then I wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep. My mind would start spinning, worrying about everything from to-do lists to relationships to the state of the planet.
It took a lot of trial and error, but I found two things that were primary contributors to my sleep quality: the temperature of the room and an organizational system for my thoughts. Simple things, profound difference.
Absolutely nothing will change your life more quickly than getting better sleep. If you’re not getting enough, make this your #1 priority for the new year.
2. Be present
I’ve talked before how hard it was for me to leave London, where I had a strong community and group of friends. But one of the things I’m really loving about Seattle? Being so close to family. For the first time in many years, I spent Thanksgiving surrounded by my extended family and it made me realize how much I’d been missing.
3. Be more generous
And then there are those times when you simply don’t have the means to be present.
Which is why I’m offering to fly one person home for the holidays who otherwise can’t afford it.
Just leave me a comment below, letting me know who you’d love to see and where you want to fly to/from. My daughter and I will choose one person to go home for the holidays (Note: the contest is now closed).
It’s the least we can do. All we ask is that you find a way to pay the love (and joy!) forward. Singing is optional.
4. Be more creative
I know there are some people who say they aren’t the creative types, but I don’t believe it. That’s the inner critic talking. You can express yourself however you want: gardening, drawing, writing, photography, or my personal favorite, dancing like I’m at a disco, but from the comfort of my kitchen. Or if you’re an overachiever, you can go for a paper mache dragon or something.
5. Be entrepreneurial
The 10-year-old daughter of a friend of mine recently launched a new business on Etsy: handmade duct-tape wallets. Sounds weird, but then I checked them out. Totally cool. She came up with the entire concept in a day. The point of a business doesn’t always have to be about money. In fact, just starting is something to be proud of, and from that pride you’ll also find joy.
6. Be daring
All of us tend to admire an adventurer or two. Maybe you’ve daydreamed of pitting yourself against the elements like Shackleton or pushing the limits like Earhart. But hey, it doesn’t have to be so dramatic. Need some ideas you can use today? Try out my free Everyday Courage Challenge series.
7. Be committed
Most of you know I’ve been working on a book for over a year now. I’m making progress–I’m about halfway through the first draft. But somehow I managed to go the entire month of November without writing. So I committed to working on my book every single day for the month of December–and I’ve already surpassed the progress I made in the last several months combined.
Commitment to something you care about, even when (or especially when) it’s hard, is pure joy.
8. Be spontaneous
When you’re pursuing big dreams and challenges, you pretty much have to be a planner. As I know all too well, you don’t write a book or start a business just by sitting down whenever you feel like it.
But it’s easy to get over-scheduled and worn down. When the passion starts to feel like work, you need some more spontaneity.
So I’ve started planning for it. Give yourself 30-60 minutes each day to do whatever comes to mind at the time. Sometimes I read a book with my daughter, but soon I want to make a 2015 calendar from our family photos. Whatever sounds appealing at the time is what you should pursue. No need to be productive!
9. Be willing to experiment
As some of you may have noticed, I haven’t been blogging as much (due to the book taking up my writing energy), but I still wanted to stay connected to my community. A friend recently released a course on how businesses can use Facebook (affiliate) to better engage with their audiences. I was skeptical, because in the past, Facebook’s crazy algorithm made it next to impossible to get my posts seen by anyone (this is why, for example, Copyblogger quit Facebook all together).
I told my friend I’d try out his method for 30 days. And as I learned the ropes, it was a lot of work. I will admit this overachiever was impatient and ready to quit. But I’m so glad I gave it a chance.
Now my Facebook page is not only allowing me to keep up the conversation while I write my book, but I’m growing new readers and fans every day.
Not every experiment will work–that’s the nature of experimentation! But the willingness to try is itself a reward.
10. Be open to something new
Next to my writing, some of the most gratifying work I’ve done this year is to help my clients make breakthrough progress on their dreams and goals. This almost always required them to think differently about their problems, try new approaches, and stop doing the stuff that wasn’t moving them forward.
And they’ve had some spectacular successes this year. But the truly hard work, the transformational work, was theirs alone.
It was being open to trying something new.
Humans are creatures of habit. Even when we know something isn’t working for us, we have a hard time trusting that something else will work any better. When we run the “What if…” scenarios in our head, they’re almost always negative.
But “what if” our hesitance is holding us back from something truly amazing?
For myself, I plan to focus my ambition on being more bold, passionate, committed, and creative than ever before–without losing sight of my health and relationships.
I don’t have it all figured out, but I trust in myself to figure it out as I go along. I’m willing to experiment, fail, and try again. And love the process along the way.
It’s time to level up, my friends.
May we all think fondly on our past and the lessons we’ve learned there. Let us be present and grateful for the moment. May we look forward with courage and joy.
Happy holidays, everyone.
Hi there,
what a wonderful idea, your gift for one person. I was lucky and found the money for my flight home transferred to my bank account one morning.
This has been a tough year for me and I was so lucky to get a few presents in unexpected moments. They changed my world, made me have faith again and had a big part in me being able to get on my feet again.
I am happy for the person that will receive your present and happy for you and for your daughter. Merry Christmas!
Thanks, Karin. I’m so happy to hear that your ticket home found its way to you already. Surrounding yourself with a community of supporters goes a long way in enduring those hard times. Let’s keep spreading the love however we can, eh? Merry Christmas to you and yours as well! Here’s to a spectacular 2015.
Hey Jen,
I’m hoping to spend Christmas with my mother. I’m in warm New Orleans, and she’s in snowy Utah. I’ve been planning to go for a few months and saving appropriately, but what was it that John Lennon said, life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans?
Mom is 72, and I worry like everyone with older parents that this will be the last time we spend the holidays together, but that’s not necessarily why it’s important to spend this Christmas with her. It’s that it will be my first Christmas alone, and hers, too, otherwise. I’m separated, and my daughters have other plans for the first time this year, and her husband has recently passed away. I can handle Christmas alone – by pre-planning, staying busy – and she can, too, but to tell you the truth, I just want to be with her. I think we need one another.
Thanks for the opportunity, and hope you have a wonderful holiday season.
Oh man, Terri. I know our day will come when our daughter doesn’t come home for Christmas–just thinking about it makes me teary. I’m sure your mom could really use some comfort too right now. I hope you win too. Right now, your chances are looking excellent! 🙂
It would be such a gift if my 29 yr old son could somehow join the family for Christmas this year. He started grad school across the country in august. He has had a challenging first semester (good but hard). He lives on a tiny stipend which is fine because he is pursuing a dream. .. but none of us can afford to bring him home for Christmas. We will pay for him to come home this summer for his sister’s wedding. ..and it will be wonderful to have him here them. But. ..his paternal aunt was just diagnosed w terminal lung cancer w only months to live. He would love to see her one last time, we would love to have him home for her last Christmas, and in this hard time, this mama just wants to give that son a big long huuuuuggg! (If he isn’t chosen as your winner, at least we have the wonders of Skype! !!)
Jill, I’m so sorry to hear about your sister-in-law. Our family just lost someone to pancreatic cancer and I was so happy my husband got a chance to see her before she died. Combined with a tough year at school, I can imagine your son needs some family time. I hope we can get him there. Thanks for entering!
Jen- Wonderful post, thank you.
One that really helps me is “Be Grateful.” I am so blessed with family, friends, health, and opportunity.
The hardest thing for me (busy, plugged in) is to be present, especially with my kids. I need to clear my head and be where they need.
Yes. Pushing the technology to the side so the humans can be front and center is definitely a challenge, probably for almost everyone these days.
That is awesome and SO generous of you!!!
Thanks, Daria. It’s definitely an all around win when you can spread that much love and joy with a single act. Happy holidays to you and yours!!
Please note that the contest is now closed. In the spirit of generosity, both entrants were selected as winners. Happy holidays to everyone in the Everyday Bright community. I’ll see you next year!
The intention to give tickets is sufficient for me. I will work on improving myself on the “Giving” part.
May the Almighty Lord bless you and your family with good health, wealth, knowledge, wisdom and prosperity.
Wish you and all the readers a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year (in advance).
Thanks so much, Shankar. I appreciate the kindness. Remember, generosity doesn’t have to be about money. I suspect you are already more generous than you give yourself credit for. 🙂
I just wanted to say thank you for coming up with such a lovely contest and for giving a priceless gift to those two families. It is gestures like these that brighten up the world for us all. Hope you have an AMAZING Christmas. Claire. x
Thank you, Claire, that means a lot. All the best to you and yours as well!
Hi Jennifer, Great article and I couldn’t agree with your first 3 elements more. Of course you need to take care of yourself and be well rested. Being in a poor position physically will significantly impact your mental capacity. The next step is to live in the present, like you mention, without negatively impacting the future. Also being generous is a useful mindset that goes along with the abundance theory. Instead of living life like the more other get means less that you get, and realizing that their is plenty to go around for everyone will open up many opportunities. Then of course use some of your other steps to jump right into taking advantage of those opportunities.
Thanks for adding your thoughts, Jason. And happy holidays!
I would love to be happier, as I’m sure most people would, so I thought it would be interesting to find some ways to become a happier person that are actually backed up by science.
Hi there,
I know, that time has passed, but I still kind of miss the closing of the wonderful christmas gift. Did these people fly to their families? I just think, that if they did, somebody would have left a comment….just wondering…
Hi Karin,
Indeed, our winners did go to visit their families. They even sent me pictures! (Which I didn’t post for obvious reasons of privacy) Thanks for checking back. I may well do this again next year. I loved hearing the happy stories that came back.
Good to hear!!! Thanks for the update!!!