7 Days
To Happiness!

Mirjam Stoffels

N ot so long ago I wrote a post on seven habits of happy women. Last week I stumbled on a post from the Purpose Fairy and blogger Luminita Daniela Saviuc on the Huffpost Healthy Living: the seven-day happy challenge. A great post that I don’t want to keep from you!

Luminita gives us seven steps, one a day. If you commit yourself to doing them step-by-step without cheating, you will not only know what makes happy people happy, but at the end of the challenge, you might also experience that happiness for yourself. I thought: ‘One step a day?That I can handle!’ And guess what? I can! And if I can you can! So let’s do them together…

 
If you ever wonder what are some of the things happy people do differently and what are some of their secrets and tools for achieving a long-lasting happiness, then here is the answer and the challenge: seven days to happiness!

 
Day #1
Practice tolerance and acceptance
Look around for things you find irritating. People who might act in nasty ways, events that might not be going as you would want them to go, and practice tolerance and acceptance toward them. Let them be as they are without trying to change them, without trying to interfere, and accept them completely.

‘Acceptance and tolerance and forgiveness, those are life-altering lessons’
~Jessica Lange

 
Day #2
Practice letting go
On this day [only today, tomorrow you can go back to whatever it is you're holding on so tightly], let go of all the things that are toxic for you. Whether they are toxic thoughts, behaviors or people… Just let them go. Let go of the need to chase success and money, let go of the need to chase after people’s approval, let go of resentment, let go of the need to blame outside forces for whatever is missing in your life. Let go of it all and just be present with what is.

‘In the endgame of life, I fundamentally believe
the key to happiness is letting go of the idea of perfection’
~Debra Messing

 
Day #3
Practice forgiveness
On this day, think of all the people that mistreated you, all the horrible things that happened to you in the past, and practice forgiveness towards them all. Let go of the resentment, let go of past hurts, forgive those who have hurt you and forgive yourself for past mistakes. On this day, commit yourself to forgiving everything and everyone and allow yourself to feel the peace that comes from doing that.

‘Forgiveness is a virtue of the brave’
~Indira Gandhi

 
Day #4
Practice gratitude and appreciation
Look for things to appreciate, in yourself, in others and in your life. On this day, your main focus will be to express your gratitude and appreciation for the wonderful being that you are, for the many wonderful people and things that are present in your life. For being loved and loving. Maybe write a love note to your boyfriend or spouse. Let everyone know how much you love and appreciate them, and how grateful you are to have them in your life. Get creative, get spontaneous, get grateful. Send flowers to your mother, grandmother, sister or cousin, and make sure you add an appreciation note in there.

‘Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more’
~Melody Beattie

 
Day #5
Give more, expect less
It doesn’t necessary have to be material things that you give. A lot of times giving our time and attention to those we love could turn out to be one of the most beautiful gifts we have ever offered them. Give more of your time to your life partner, your children, friends, family and coworkers. Give more of your knowledge, your expertise, you unique gifts and talents to others. Give food to those in need, give some money and if you can’t give them that, give them a silent blessing, give them your love and kind words.

‘I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver’
~Maya Angelou

 
Day #6
Practice playfulness
Be silly, be weird, say whatever comes to mind [make sure it's not offensive to those around you], have fun. Allow yourself to be playful and carefree as a child. Dance, sing, be wild, be free. Laugh until your belly hurts and then laugh some more. Put some really good music and start dancing around the house. Don’t think too much, just do it. Have fun!

‘I think there’s a little child in all of us and we all to often forget to let the child out to play’
~Donna A. Favors

 
Day #7
Play the role of your ideal self [click to tweet]
On this day, you will act as if all your dreams have come true, as if you have your whole life figured out, as if there is nothing you lack… as if you know it all, have it, are it all. Today, you will wear the costume of your ideal self. Think like your ideal self, walk and talk like your ideal self, and live like your ideal self. Today is the day you experience what it feels like to be the amazing person you dream your ideal self to be. Today you will live the ideal life you have dreamed to live. Feel the feelings that come from being who you want to be and living life the way you want to live, because chances are that you will feel so good that you will never want to go back to the old you.

‘Acting is not about being someone different.
It’s finding the similarity in what is apparently different, then finding myself in there’
~Meryl Streep

 
And yes, you deserve it…
The bonus
Put on your best outfit and go out to celebrate!
Celebrate life, celebrate yourself and celebrate your accomplishment. You did it! You finished your seven-day challenge! Now that you are done with your seven-day happiness challenge, do you think you can make these practices part of your daily life? Are you willing to give happiness a try?

‘In my household there is an insane amount of laughter and celebration’
~Edie Falco

Sharing is caring!
Let’s take on this challenge together! Let’s start right here, right now!
Please share your results, insights and experience the coming week! Leave them in the comment box below.
Thank you!

Luminita Saviuc-Daniela

Also known as the Purpose Fairy. She is an enthusiastic student of art, economics, psychology and spirituality. She is also a writer, blogger, photographer, the creative lead of product development at Mindvalley, soul sculptor and a lover of life. Visit Luminita’s site, PurposeFairy.com, follow her on Twitter @PurposeFairy or Like her on Facebook!

 
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