Do You Want To Live A Happy Life? Smile.
Sometimes there’s no reason to smile, but I’ll smile anyway because of life. Yes, I’m one of those people who always smiles.
- I smile when I enter a room.
- I smile when I see other people.
- I smile when I’m by myself.
- I smile when I see the sun.
- I smile when things are difficult.
Am I crazy? A pessimist would say yes.
But smiling is an attitude. Most people think it’s an effect of something.
“I don’t have a reason to smile.”
Well, there you have it. You’re thinking all wrong.
It’s not like you have to do something, or buy something to smile.
When I smile, I think, “I’m happy to be alive.” I do not even think life is good. When I was in college, I was in debt, made no money, and live in a dirty ass apartment. But I didn’t care because it was still good to be alive, despite that it wasn’t easy.
When I walk around in the city, I see sad faces.
It doesn’t matter where I am. Amsterdam, London, New York, Milan, Barcelona.
When people look at me, I smile; sometimes I say hi. And they think: “This guy is going to kill me.”
Some days I’m a little tired. Maybe I didn’t sleep well. Maybe I worked out too hard in the gym. Maybe I just worked too hard at the office.
But I’ll still smile from the inside.
- I smile when I wake up
- I smile when life is bad.
- I smile when I listen to music.
- I smile when I see a stranger.
- I smile when I hear a good story.
- I smile when I see rain.
- I smile when I put on my running shoes.
- I smile when I ride my bike.
Never gloomy. Never sad. Even when I’m down.
I wasn’t always like that.
Smiling is a skill. Being happy is also a skill.
You practice it every day. How? Just walk around and smile. You say to yourself, “I choose to smile.”
- Does your boss scream at you? Smile.
- Do you lose money? Smile.
- Is you girlfriend sad/angry? Smile.
- Is you son annoying you? Smile.
- Does your co-worker patronize you? Smile.
That’s small stuff. There’s real pain outside of all the trivial things that happen in your life. When I’m angry, upset, gloomy, I give myself 4 minutes to feel sorry for myself.
“Oh poor you.”
Now, smile again.
You can’t feel two emotions at the same time. It’s just impossible. Your brain isn’t capable of that.
When someone I love is upset, I do something weird so they smile. You can’t be upset and be happy at the same time.
It’s a strategy.
Humor, laughter, enjoyment, and smiling are the secret to living a good life.
Best thing about it?
IT’S FUCKING FREE.
Did you smile?
Originally posted on dariusforoux.com.
Want more content?
Hey, I’m Darius Foroux; thanks for reading this article.
I research how to (1) overcome procrastination, (2) improve productivity, and (3) get things done. Every Monday and Thursday I publish a practical article related to those 3 topics.
Sign up for my free newsletter to receive my articles in your inbox. I will also send you 2 practical ebooks. One is about finding your dream job. And the other is about 7 tips that improve productivity.
