Setting a Goal Works Better When You Lighten Up with 14 Ways to Get More Fun, More Joy and More Love in Your Life Every Day

 1.  Randomly wish people a good day whom you encounter as you go about your work or errands. Really pay attention to people you normally ignore, notice how they look and what they say. Start a conversation with someone you normally don’t talk to and try to learn something interesting about that person.

2.  Create a ritual for yourself that is nurturing and supportive. For example, you could start the day by meditating for 10 minutes, then prepare your favorite tea or other beverage and read the paper or a book for a short period of time.

3.  Go out to a local farm where they let you pick your own produce (apples, peaches, berries, corn, green beans for example). Enjoy the fun of experiencing the actual place where you food was grown as well as the bargain price.

4.  Have a good cry or a good laugh. One way to get a laugh on demand is to read a Mad-Lib or tell a silly story to a friend or your favorite child. Mad-Libs are available at large book stores like Barnes and Noble.

5.  Scribble for ten minutes with either crayons or colored pens. When you scribble, don’t try to make any kind of picture, just make lines on the page in any color you like. An Australian architect I met once used this technique every time he wanted to work on an architectural drawing, especially when he was coming up with a new design. He said it really improved his creativity and relaxed him. It also helped to release his self-judgment.

6.  Go out in nature early in the morning and notice how things look with dew on them especially notice spider webs and the remarkable design variations you’ll find in them.

7.  Go to a local duck pond in spring and feed the ducks. You can also feed squirrels and birds at a park.

8.  Do you do volunteer work on a regular basis? If not, try doing it just once to see what it would be like. Be sure to choose something you like to do and a cause you support. You may find that it's habit forming. Some examples of volunteer work are; read to children at the library; help feed the homeless; help seniors at a senior center or pick up their groceries; work with environmental groups or volunteer at your local animal shelter. If you already are a volunteer, try doing a different kind of work than you’ve done in the past. You may be overlooking an opportunity to try something you’d really like.

9.  Take a walk around your neighborhood and think of ways to improve it. Could you help a neighbor clean his or her yard? Could you pick up litter in a local park or try to make some changes through your local town council?

10.  Put plants in your garden to attract butterflies and birds. Make your yard into a habitat for wildlife.

11.  Make your own greeting cards with plants, yarn, stickers, etc. If you’re an artist, paint small pictures on them. You can stamp designs on them or use pictures cut from magazines. Send them to special friends.

12.  Buy a coloring book and color the pictures like you did when you were young.

13.  Put up some seasonal decorations that aren’t related to a special holiday but relate to seasons like spring, summer, fall or winter. For spring you could cut some branches with new leaves on them. In fall dried flowers are nice or an arrangement of fall fruit and nuts could be interesting.

14.  Get involved in a group (or start one) where you can be really honest about your feelings. Some groups that already provide a safe place to share are the 12 Step groups such as AA, Al-Anon, Coda etc. (check the Web for locations and times). There are also therapy groups led by professionals that provide a safe place to share and some churches have these as well.