Happiness is something that anyone can create for himself or herself—we can mindfully wire our brains to be happier and love ourselves. If you’ve ever learned about Pavlov’s dogs (which I’m sure we all have), then you understand the power of the brain and what re-wiring can do to the mind.
Our minds are naturally programmed to pay attention to the negatives in our lives, which can be great when it comes to keeping us safe, but not so much when it’s affecting our happiness. So what can we do to experience more happiness when we’re involuntarily focusing so much on things that bring us down? Be kind to yourself—show yourself some love!
Think about what loving yourself means to you. Ask yourself: What makes you happy? And start mindfully introducing these things into your life; try doing it within specific contexts each time. When we repeatedly present gifts of love to ourselves within certain contexts or situations, we’ll begin to relate those situations to the feeling of happiness; just like how Pavlov’s dogs began to relate the ringing of the bell to food.
Try giving yourself gifts in this way over next week or two, both at work and at home, and see how much loving yourself can affect your happiness each day.