iVillage logo
Search iVillage
Pregnancy
Parenting
Health
Diet & Fitness
Beauty & Fashion
Relationships
Home & Garden
Food & Drink
Work & Money
Entertainment
Horoscopes
Travel
Relationships 
  |  Family & Friends  |  Emotional well-being  |  The happiness workshop: week four
Advertisement
Topics
Sex
Family & Friends
Emotional well-being
Family Issues
Friends, Lovers & Exes
Social Skills
Divorce
Marriage
Couples
Single & Dating
Community
Understanding Men
partners
iVillage shopping

Hot stuff
The urban girl's guide
Sex positions to try
The Orgasmatron
Decode your man
iVillage sex shop
iVillage Community Award winners
Men are perfect but...
Newsletters
sign up for FREE!




 
Promotions
Dating dilemmas
A new survey by DatingDirect.com, reveals 84 per cent of single Brits struggle to find a date
Transform coffee breaks
A sprinkling of Latte Creations makes an everyday coffee break extra special
A summer to remember
Win a delicious wine cellar and VIP weekend to Hard Rock Calling at Hyde Park

The happiness workshop: week four

by Susan Quilliam
continued from page 2
The meaning of life
To keep your good mood stable, you need to keep some sense of meaning in your existence - not just focusing on you. If you want to be happy:

Find your mission. Everyone needs to feel that they are here on earth for a purpose. What's your aim in life? What do you want to achieve? How do you want to be remembered? Your aim might be to succeed in your career, to have a superb marriage, to raise healthy and happy children. Identify your purpose by looking at the things that enthuse you - and let that purpose inform what you do and the decisions you make in life.

Follow your morals. Studies suggest that if you have some guiding principles in your life, then you'll feel more contented within yourself. You don't have to believe in formal religion - but you should follow a moral code. Take regular time out to think about what you believe in and how you feel you should act - then act accordingly.

Connect with something beyond. Finding the meaning in life isn't just about striving and achieving. You need to have times when you let go and allow yourself to be aware of something 'bigger than you are'. Listen to uplifting music. Watch sunsets. Take a meditation or yoga course. Take regular nature walks. These things don't just feel good, they're essential to your happiness.

More resources:
  • Teach Yourself to Meditate by Eric Harrison (Piatkus Books)
  • Be Your Own Life Coach by Fiona Harrold (Hodder Mobius)
  • Visit the British Wheel of Yoga website


    Introducing The Happiness Workshop:
  • Quiz: The Happiness Test
  • Week one: Happy body
  • Week two: Happy mind
  • Week three: Happy interactions
  • Week four: Happy life
  • Message board: Get happy


    •  previous | 1 |  2 |  3 | print printer friendly send to a friend
      
    Delicious     Digg     reddit     Facebook     StumbleUpon