{"id":622,"date":"2011-03-10T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-03-10T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/angelsonyourshoulder\/2011\/03\/ten-simple-steps-to-finding-happiness-freedom-and-joy.html"},"modified":"2011-03-10T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2011-03-10T00:00:00","slug":"ten-simple-steps-to-finding-happiness-freedom-and-joy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/angelsonyourshoulder\/2011\/03\/ten-simple-steps-to-finding-happiness-freedom-and-joy.html","title":{"rendered":"Ten simple steps to finding Happiness, Freedom and Joy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ten
\nsimple steps<\/font>
<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

These are ten very simple steps, they are simple but not necessarily easy to remember to do in the moment.<\/b> As we journey though Lent and the 40 days to love<\/b><\/i> perhaps focus on one step each day. Practice it until it becomes part of you. They work together, alone and can become a integral part of your life and enhance the quality of your life immensely.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Breathing<\/font><\/b>. Pause frequently
\nduring the day and take a deep breath. It is so easy to get caught up with the
\nevents of the day and forget to take the time to connect with ourselves, no
\nless our spirit. The simple act of taking a long, slow, mindful breath will
\nallow us to do just that.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Choice<\/b><\/font>. Each moment of our
\nlife is an opportunity to make a choice. We can choose thoughts that allow us
\nto feel stressed, disconnected, and unhappy, or we can begin to train our minds
\nto think thoughts that bring peace.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Perspective.<\/font><\/b> How we look at
\nlife dictates how we feel and the choices we make. If you change your perspective,
\neverything changes and, simultaneously, nothing changes. Dominion is a way of
\nlooking at life in which the problem and the solution become one and in which happiness
\nbecomes second nature. Symbolically, dominion is represented as a sphere.
\nToday, imagine yourself looking at life from a different spot on the sphere and
\nsee what happens.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

Gratitude.<\/font><\/b> When we are truly
\ngrateful, fear no longer exists. If you find yourself stuck in traffic, be grateful
\nyou have a car. Whatever you ‘hate’ in your life – find a way to be grateful
\nfor it.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

Emotional Neutrality.<\/b><\/font>
\nNothing in life inherently has an emotion attached to it. All of our emotions
\nare based on what we tell ourselves about the events in our life. If you don’t
\nlike how you are feeling at any given moment, notice what you’ve been telling
\nyourself and tell yourself something different.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

Eyes of love.<\/b><\/font> We can see
\nlife through the eyes of love or the eyes of fear. Practice asking yourself, “How
\ncan I see this through the eyes of love?”<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

Meditating. <\/font><\/b>Instead of
\nfitting your spiritual practices into your life why not fit your life around
\nyour spiritual practice? Set aside a specific time each day to meditate and
\nthen sit back and relax. You will find you have more time, not less, when
\nconnecting with your spirit becomes a priority rather than an occasional
\nafterthought.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

Discernment.<\/font><\/b> You are
\nconstantly talking to yourself – at times you are more aware of your self-talk than
\nothers. Ask yourself, “Is this the voice of fear or the voice of love?” Learn
\nto listen to the voice of love more often than the voice of fear.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

Letting go.<\/font><\/b> As the Buddha
\nsaid – all suffering is caused by our attachment. In life, you can let go of outcomes,
\npeople’s behaviors, and events in two ways. If you have something in your hand,
\nyou can let go with your palm facing up and it remains in your hand or you can
\nlet go with your palm facing down and it falls away. Practice letting go of
\nlife with your palm down and see what happens.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/font><\/b><\/p>\n

Do you want to be right or
\nhappy? <\/font><\/b>Your beliefs and perspective often make those choices mutually exclusive.
\nBefore you decide to act today, notice if you really want to be right or if you
\nreally want to be happy; then decide accordingly. <\/span><\/p>\n

With love and aloha,
\nSusan<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n

Angels are everywhere just open your mind and your heart to the signs.<\/p>\n

Make Angels on Your Shoulder<\/a> part of your daily routine and share it with a friend!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ten simple steps These are ten very simple steps, they are simple but not necessarily easy to remember to do in the moment. As we journey though Lent and the 40 days to love perhaps focus on one step each day. Practice it until it becomes part of you. They work together, alone and can…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,26,25,509,13,7,5],"tags":[619,29,69,240],"class_list":["post-622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-angels","category-beliefs","category-conscious-creation","category-gratitude-2","category-love","category-meditation","category-spiritual-guidance","tag-40-days-to-love","tag-angels-2","tag-happiness-2","tag-lent"],"yoast_head":"\nTen simple steps to finding Happiness, Freedom and Joy - Angels on Your Shoulder<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/angelsonyourshoulder\/2011\/03\/ten-simple-steps-to-finding-happiness-freedom-and-joy.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ten simple steps to finding Happiness, Freedom and Joy - Angels on Your Shoulder\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ten simple steps These are ten very simple steps, they are simple but not necessarily easy to remember to do in the moment. 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