New research on positive psychology exercises has found a number of ways to give your happiness a boost and lessen your depression. If you are trying to manage your stress better, lift some of the holiday blues, or simply become a bit more happy, pick one of these 7 exercises and try it for a 1 week.
• One door closes, another door opens: Consider a moment in your life when a negative event led to positive consequences that you were not expecting. Write about this each day.
• Gift of time: Offer the “gift” of your time to three different people this week. This might be in the form of time spent, helping someone around their house, or sharing a meal with someone who is lonely. These “gifts” should be in addition to your planned activities.
• Counting kindness: Keep a log of all the kind acts that you do in a particular day. Jot them down by the end of each day.
• Three funny things: Write down the three funniest things that you experienced or participated in each day; also write about why the funny thing happened (e.g., was it something you created, something you observed, something spontaneous?)
• Gratitude letter/visit: Write a letter of gratitude to someone who has had a positive impact on you. If feasible, you might consider delivering the letter to the person. [It is important to first weigh the pros and cons of delivering such a letter.]
• Three good things: Jot down three things that went well for you each day and give an explanation as to why these good things occurred.