{"id":51,"date":"2012-03-18T23:40:00","date_gmt":"2012-03-18T23:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/happiness\/?p=51"},"modified":"2012-03-18T23:40:00","modified_gmt":"2012-03-18T23:40:00","slug":"becoming-happier-be-yourself-no-exceptions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/happiness\/2012\/03\/18\/becoming-happier-be-yourself-no-exceptions\/","title":{"rendered":"Becoming Happier: Be Yourself (no exceptions!)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Being fully myself makes me happier<\/strong>. I may not be perfect but I am perfectly me, and this means that I don\u2019t try to please others — I don\u2019t say that I want to do something when I don\u2019t. If someone asks me to see a violent movie, I\u2019ll say no. By saying no to them I am really saying yes to me. The \u201cme\u201d that loves peaceful music, gardening, meditating, writing and creating things whether it is a tree-house or a new game at basketball to get everyone improving their game.<\/p>\n

Being Fully Me<\/strong><\/em>: Happiness Naturally Happens<\/p>\n

Carl Jung said \u201cthe privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are\u201d and I know this to be true. Somehow when we are younger we seem to want to please others, and we become \u201chappy\u201d when we\u2019ve gotten good grades, made the soccer team or got the girlfriend (or boyfriend) of our dreams. But this temporary type of happiness comes and goes. Getting to a deeper type of happiness happens only when we go within and really become who we truly are.<\/p>\n

I can only speak from my own truth but I will say this: Happiness can only happen when you are being true to you.<\/p>\n

When I look at my life and ask, \u201cWhen am I the happiest?\u201d the answer is easy — it is when I am writing or being with children. Writing is that \u201cflow experience<\/strong><\/em>\u201d for me that psychologist and rock climber, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, describes where you get engaged in something that requires skill and you seem to \u201close time\u201d or get totally immersed in applying your skill to meet a challenge. (Others who report high flow on a regular basis include surgeons, stock traders, and musicians).<\/p>\n

Being with children is the other thing that makes me happy. I realize spending Sunday morning with 27 highly energetic children probably would make most adults feel uncomfortable but me — I was in the zone. This is my gift and by spending time with children, encouraging their dreams, instilling a sense of spirituality and confidence in them I get to use my gift. So using your unique gift<\/strong><\/em> makes you happier too!<\/p>\n

Be Fully You<\/strong><\/em>: Happiness is on the way<\/p>\n

Give yourself permission to be fully you. The \u201cYou\u201d that is happy when you express your unique gifts and talents. And be good to yourself because discovering your gift(s) is one of the most sacred things you do on planet earth — it is your work here, and I suggest you have fun with it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

By Maureen Healy<\/p>\n

Maureen Healy<\/strong><\/em> is an emotional health expert with more than 20 years of global experience. Her new book, Growing Happy Kids: How to Foster Inner Confidence, Success and Happiness<\/strong><\/em> is available wherever books are sold. More info: www.growinghappykids.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Being fully myself makes me happier. I may not be perfect but I am perfectly me, and this means that I don\u2019t try to please others — I don\u2019t say that I want to do something when I don\u2019t. If someone asks me to see a violent movie, I\u2019ll say no. 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I may not be perfect but I am perfectly me, and this means that I don\u2019t try to please others — I don\u2019t say that I want to do something when I don\u2019t. If someone asks me to see a violent movie, I\u2019ll say no. 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