Happiness - Be Kind to Yourself

Want to be happier: be kind to yourself.

Jumping out of bed and being spectacular everyday is not necessary for happiness. There are times when you may feel like staying in bed longer to rest and reflect. Give yourself permission to lounge around or do what you want, not what you think you should. If there are tasks that just must be done on a given day, do them quickly and treat yourself afterwards.

No one is as hard on us as we are on ourselves. We push ourselves to exhaustion and berate ourselves for not getting enough done. Good is never good enough for many people. I hope you're not one of them.

Living a happy life depends on how well you take care of yourself. You know that a beautiful flower needs watering, sunshine and care to survive. You, too, as a unique creation need care as well.

Practice taking care of yourself in other ways:

* Avoid taking on more than you can handle.
* Live your dream, not someone else's.
* Schedule breaks in your day and in your week.
* Take pride in your achievements, but give yourself a break when you make
mistakes.
* Pamper yourself on occasion.
* Eat nourishing food that enhances your energy and spirit.
* Breathe deeply, letting oxygen in and toxins out.Get adequate sustained sleep,
even if it requires investing in a new mattress or pillows.

When you are kind to yourself, it increases your energy, improves your attitude and makes you more compassionate toward others. When you are kind to yourself it will be easy to be kind to others, for you will be putting a variation of the Golden Rule into effect: "doing unto them as you have done unto yourself."