# Happiness/Optimism

>Happiness
Optimism may be based on God (higher powers), enlightenment (positivity as inner attitude), life (predictability), positive goals, other people or oneself (self-confidence). Positive thinking gives us the power to achieve our goals and to go our way successfully. Positive thoughts lead to positive feelings. Positive emotions make you healthy and happy. Who is optimistic lives happier and more successful. To be positive and optimistic, we should regularly practice physical and mental exercises. We should have a positive inner center (philosophy, religion) in our lives.
Wikipedia: Optimism is a mental attitude or world view that interprets situations and events as being best (optimized). The concept is typically extended to include the attitude of hope for future conditions unfolding as optimal as well. A common idiom used to illustrate optimism versus pessimism is a glass with water at the halfway point, where the optimist is said to see the glass as half full, but the pessimist sees the glass as half empty. Being optimistic, in the typical sense of the word, ultimately means one expects the best possible outcome from any given situation. This is usually referred to in psychology as dispositional optimism.

## Fundamentals

* What hinders a person to be happy at a deep level, primarily are his inner tensions. They rob him his power, they destroy his well-being, they damage his inner peace and they reduce his mental positivity. A person with many inner conflicts tends to have negative thoughts. The love to himself and to his fellow man is blocked.
* The internal stresses are often created already in the childhood. In a tensed society, which is based on work pressure and rivalry, tension is passed down from parents in the upbringing of their children. The parents live out their fears, aggression and addictions and thus influence the psychological development of their children. Many children's tensions are also came from the capitalistic TV. It focuses on fears, aggressions and addictions to get many viewers, and therefore destroys the happiness in the children. Tenseness in a person can also be caused by big stress events or by a permanent stress at school, at work or in partnership.
* If internal stresses can be built up, they also in principle can be broken down again. That's the good news for all tensed people. The not so good news is that this may take quite a long time. The structure of the tension is built up over many years. We need, therefore, usually many years to reduce the tension again. But the effort is always worthwhile. We thus avoid many diseases in old age. And we get a happy life filled with peace, power and positivity.
* A wise life is to make every day so many spiritual exercises, that the internal tensions become always less. We have to live in a way that we grow into the light and not into the darkness. Most people in today's time march in the wrong direction. They live selfishly and stressed. They build up in the course of life more and more tensions. They end up in the burn-out, in sickness, negativity and depression.
* Tensions can sit in the body and in the spirit. Basically the two are linked. Thus we free ourselves from our internal tensions, if we do spiritual exercises for both areas. Inner happiness comes at a deep level only when the body and the mind are purified from the tension. People are different from their personalities and have different tensions. Everyone should therefore find the exercises that are suited best for him. He should develop the practice of happiness that leads him at the best to his goal.
* Wikipedia: There is now extensive research suggesting that religious people are happier and less stressed. There are a number of mechanisms through which religion may make a person happier, including social contact and support that result from religious pursuits, the mental activity that comes with optimism and volunteering, learned coping strategies that enhance one's ability to deal with stress, and psychological factors such as "reason for being."

## The Spiritual Centering

* The most important thing in life is the spiritual centering. The spiritual centering consists of the personal philosophy of life. A spiritual centering should include the five principles of love, peace, truth, strength and joy. If we live with wisdom according to these five principles, we grow into happiness, into enlightenment, into a life in the light (in God, in fulfillment).
* Basically, the path of inner happiness consists of health practices and of mental work. Health exercises are sports (walking, jogging, biking - if necessary on the exercise bike), yoga and meditation. Add to this a healthy diet. Mental work means to avoid negative thoughts and to encourage positive thoughts. Negative thoughts lead to internal tensions, the destruction of the health and to bad social relationships. They are often associated with feelings such as fear, anger and addiction.
* Positive thoughts create positive feelings and a constructive external behavior. Positive thoughts we get by self-reflection, positive intentions and reading in positive books. Important is a constant attention to the inner thoughts, feelings and positive life principles (love, peace, truth, strength, happiness). Recommendable are the philosophy of happiness (Epicurus), Buddhism, Christianity and Yoga. The positive psychology found many good ways to live a happy life. It is important that we are always in touch with ourselves, our inner truth and love. A spiritual teaching gives us an orientation. For proper application in our concrete situation we are responsible for ourselves. What is good for us? What brings us forward on the path of happiness? What is useful to build up a happy world?
* The easiest way of spiritual centering is the daily reading in a spiritual book. We can also read something positive in the internet. We must not read much. A small text, a meditation an oracle a day is enough to keep us on the path to lasting happiness. For many people a daily oracle card is helpful to get a positive outlook on life. For this we need each day just a minute. That time has everyone. The gain is long term immeasurable.
* Think about your daily happiness practice. How can you integrate The Five Principles of Health into your life? What is your main way of spiritual centering (Yoga, Buddhism, Christianity, Philosophy, Positive Psychology)? Which spiritual role-model inspires you and gives you energy for a positive life (Buddha, Jesus)? What exercises do you want to practice regularly?

## Steps

* Think about the path of inner happiness. Happiness research has found that happiness comes from within to 90% and only 10% by external things (partner, money, career). Organize your life wisely, be centered in the inner happiness and health. Find the exercises that make you happy and healthy.
* Be active. Happy people have positive goals and positive tasks. Proactive people are 15% more satisfied with their lives than more passive people. Happiness researcher Ed Diener explains, “happy people set goals for themselves again and again.”
* Do sports. Regular physical activity keeps the body healthy and makes the spirit happy. Daily walks raise the level of happiness 12%.
* Do good. Those who regularly do good things for others are 24% happier than those who only live for themselves. John A. Schindler wrote, “live as a giving person. Those who give are happier than those who only take.”
* Live in the right balance of rest and activity. Scientific research shows that relaxed people think more positively and are happier. Where that point of balance between rest and activity lies, must be decided for oneself. Everyone needs to experiment a little to find this correct balance.
* Think positive. Those who think positively double their chance to realize happiness.
* Look only a little TV. Scientific research states, „ every hour of television lowers the general quality of life by 5%“. The way to positive TV viewing consists of: a) choose your programs carefully. Avoid negative films. b) Find the correct amount of TV. Children should watch a maximum of one hour per day of television. c) After watching TV, one should practice some form of spiritual exercise (such as yoga, meditation, walking, reading, contemplating the meaning of life).
* Foster friendship. Build on your positive circle of friends.
* Facilitate joy. Those who put little elements of joy in their lives can raise their overall happiness by 20%.
* Have humor. Those with a good sense of humor raise their positivity by 33%. We should foster our sense of humor and learn to not take things so seriously. We should learn to laugh at our selves. Those who are able to do so, can live lighter and brighter. It is good to see cheerful films, read funny books, and to visit joyful people.
* Have self confidence. Happy people believe in themselves. They believe in their goals, their wisdom, and their power. They see themselves as winners. They believe they will prevail in the long term.
* Find a positive thought. "My positive thought is ..."

## Discussion

(Quotes Angel oracle)
What is your technique to go through life positively?
* David: Rest in yourself. Do not let yourself affected negatively.
* Jenny: In all, there is something good. You just have to find or recognize it only.
* Man: Do not take things too seriously. After the rain comes the sunshine.
* Matilda: It's all in God's hands. God loves me and I must not fear. What I can not change, I accept!
* Dana: I try to make my life so that I'm happy here. I strive to live in harmony with myself. I have got many negative things in my life. I'm a jack with a strong will to survive.
* Sabrina: You can write down every day some things that are beautiful. Thus one will become positive.
* Star Woman: Don't let things overwhelm you. Live as a winner.
* Rick: Meditate and oriente yourself to the Buddha or an other positive role model.

## What positive sentences are good for you?

* I live in the rest.
* I take things to the way they are.
* I let go of my false desires.
* I accept myself as I am.
* I express my needs.
* I stand with both feet on earth.
* I look through.
* I am strong.
* I reach my goals.
* I allow me to live happily.
* I can distinguish the important from the unimportant.
* I live in essence.
* I have compassion for the suffering beings on earth.
* I do something for a happy world.
* I'm happy with myself and my life.

## Videos

* Happiness (2 min.)
* Happiness is a Choice (4 min.)