{FYI, the posts in this category, “A Possible Theory of Happiness,” started in August 2016, will have nothing to do with copywriting or web marketing advice. There’s lots of that kind of content in my archives and through my email list, which you can sign up for on the Free Resources page. I still offer copywriting and marketing services to creatives, which you can find out about on my Work with Me page.}
One morning a few weeks ago, I sat down and made a list in my journal of things I was going to do that day to lift my spirits.
I’d had a few challenging weeks, and this Death by a Thousand Cuts period was well and truly stealing my joy.
But I knew if I really thought about it, there were things I could do, however small, that would help me feel more joyful and positive. Naturally, my OCD brain told me to make a list.
On this list were things like:
:: Exercise
:: Meditate
:: Call a friend
:: Get some work done
:: Watch or read something funny
As I remember, I put about 8 things on my list that day.
At the end of the day, I went back to my journal entry and checked off all the things I had done, which turned out to be 6 of the 8.
And did I feel better? Did I feel more joyful, more positive, happier?
Why yes, yes, indeed I did.
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This morning it occurred to me I wanted to do the same thing.
I’ve had the blues for a minute (and by minute, I mean a few week/months), but yesterday I felt positively giddy. I didn’t feel that way when I woke up, but by 6:00 pm, it was like I was “old Kimberly” again – feeling happy, acting goofy and silly, and looking forward to client work, my personal writing projects, and my upcoming move back to Greensboro, NC, among other things.
What caused this elation, I wondered?
I went back over my day to suss out what it could be that made me feel so joyful, and as expected, it was a combination of the “little things.”
I had taken a 20-minute walk, made progress on several client writing projects, emailed with a friend, sent a resume for a possible job in Greensboro, prayed and meditated, read for pleasure, worked on a personal writing project, and read The Onion for a few gut laughs.
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Here’s my list for today (I’ll come back at the end of the day today, or sometime tomorrow, and check off what I did.):
:: Work for 6-7 hours
:: Get outside for a minimum of 20 minutes
:: Work on a personal writing project
:: Pay a bill or two
:: Meditation & Prayer
:: Begin a research doc for other Greensboro businesses/companies I want to send a resume to
:: Do something nice for someone else: pay a compliment, send a text, make a call or send an email offering support and/or encouragement
:: Watch or read something funny
:: Clean/organize/toss stuff to get ready for move to Greensboro
:: Read for pleasure
:: Look at Greensboro apartments on craigslist
And now I’m off to knock out the things on the list!
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P.M. Update:
It’s now 8:15 p.m., so how’d I do today?
Of the 11 things on the list, I completed the following 8. Not too shabby.
:: Work for 6-7 hours — Worked for 7.5 hours
:: Get outside for a minimum of 20 minutes — Took a 40 minute walk
:: Work on a personal writing project — Wrote this blog post, and worked on a short story in progress (any writing outside of client writing projects “counts”)
:: Pay a bill or two — Made a credit card payment
:: Meditation & Prayer — Both done
:: Watch or read something funny — Actually haven’t done this yet, but it’s only 8:15 pm, so I know I will before the night is over
:: Read for pleasure — Done. Read a short story in The New Yorker by Curtis Sittenfeld; plus a few articles on The Millions, Publisher’s Weekly and Lit Hub.
:: Look at Greensboro apartments on craigslist — Done!
Feelin’ good. Now it’s Miller time. Or in my case, Newcastle Brown Ale time.
Happy Trails, fellow happiness seekers!
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