And I’m not talking about cocktails…

When people ask me how I am doing, I truly answer with, “I am fantastic. I am having the time of my life and could not be happier.” And I bet I can guess what you are thinking. Of course she is happy, who wouldn’t be when you have nothing but free time and some flexible cash for traveling? While, yes, that is all true, there is more to it. When you really look at it, traveling only takes up one week of each month for me. And although it is a great week, does it really sustain my happiness for the three weeks after I land back home? Hmmm, not completely. What I find most contributes to my overall, day-to-day happiness is making time for the things I love.

For me, happiness is: spending time with family, hiking, trying new restaurants, running, meeting up with friends, yoga, going to the movies, reading, traveling as much as possible, writing, organizing or minimizing my belongings, and spending time with my animals. Because I make time each and every day for at least a few of these sources of joy, I feel that I could just burst with happiness.

I know life is busy, but we should all make time for the things we love. I am going to call this daily time for joy the Happy Hour.

As a start, set aside just one hour from your day to do something that makes you happy.

This might be treating yourself to lunch during your work day, or treating your mom.

It might be spending an uninterrupted hour playing with your children, or your cousin’s children.

It might be calling or FaceTiming with an old friend or family member.

Perhaps it is going to your favorite spin class or playing the drums.

Maybe it is going for a midday stroll, or a late-night ice cream run.

Take an hour to paint, or read, or learn to code.

Treat yourself to a facial, massage, or a manicure.

Veg out with your favorite guilty please TV show or volunteer at your local animal shelter.

The possibilities are endless, but what is important is that you spend the hour pursuing your happiness.

I know an hour can seem like a lot of time out of your day. Especially when you are up at 6am to get ready for work, work from 8am to 6pm, and then have to come home and prepare dinner, help your kids with homework, or complete chores around the house. But, in reality, it is only 1/24th out of your day. If you work an 8-hour day, it is already taking up 1/3rd of your day, not including getting ready and commuting, and to add insult to injury, you may not even enjoy what you do! One hour, one measly 24th of your day, is such a little thing in the grand scheme…Don’t you deserve to spend it being happy?

Hopefully with time, this Happy Hour will turn into a Happy Day, then a Happy Week, then Happy Month, then Happy Year, and finally a Happy Life. Isn’t that what we all want? To be happy? So why not take the first step and make it happen for yourself. Make a date with yourself, mark it on your calendar, and don’t cancel.

 

We may not be always love the things we do, but let’s always do the things we love.

-TM

What will Happy Hour look like for you? Let us know below.