The Three Things Happiness Exercise

"In our day-to-day lives, it's easy to get caught up in the things that go wrong and feel like we're living under our own private rain cloud; at the same time, we tend to adapt to the good things and people in our lives, taking them for granted. In the process, we frequently miss opportunities for happiness and connection." ~ Three Good Things

Try the Three Things Exercise

Before reading more, take a moment to identify three good things you have experienced in the past day or so.

Write down what made them good, and how you feel right now, as you remember them. Once you have done that, come back here & I'll tell you more about it.

But first, I'll share my three. Only read them, though, if you have thought of yours already. I don't want to throw you off by distracting you with my own examples.

Also, I wrote this post days ago, so "yesterday" is probably the weekend....

(1) The day before yesterday, I went to my mom's house and since my aunt was visiting, got to hang out and laugh with them both. I feel so, so grateful for the experience!

My mom has been ill, and does not laugh nearly as much as she did before, so seeing her face light up & hearing her laugh was beautiful.

(2) When I woke up yesterday morning it was dark and dreary. And it took me a while, plus nudges from online friends, to remember that I could still make my day cozy.

Once I did, I lit several candles, turned on soft lighting and made gingerbread tea (my favorite). I know I was happier all day because of the cozy atmosphere I created, and I can feel those moments of happiness now as I remember. And I am grateful to and for those friends.

(3) Our plan for dinner was veggie burgers and fries, last night, but we forgot to get the spread I usually put on my veggie burgers.

Well, I thought of heating up butter and parmesan cheese just to have something to put on it, but I wasn't sure it would work. But boy, did it. It was yummy!

My son wanted to make it and he got a bit enthusiastic about the cheese, but it was still really good. I can still remember the surprised pleasure from that first taste.

Btw, I believe the article suggests a 24-hour period, but I think anything from the past few days would be okay. And if something pops into your mind from several days ago, I say, just be glad you remembered it. :)

Now, if you have your three things, too, and have written them down, read on...

"By listing three positive things that have happened in your day--and considering what caused them--you tune into the sources of goodness in your life." - same source

In a research study, people who did this exercise reported an increase in feelings of happiness right after doing it (did you notice that, yourself?)

But they also felt happier after a week, a month and 6 months later. Worth a try, right? I wonder what 6 months later would feel like.

See you next time!

Love, Jeanine

P.S. I swooped back in to update this post because I noticed a few mistakes & I decided to pause for a moment to think of 3 more good things in real time.

They surprised me & I have learned something. I think of myself as a loner, but every memory from the past few days that popped into my head had my son or my mom in it.

Family + hygge = my recipe for happiness, apparently. What's your recipe?