Small Daily Habits That Have a Big Impact on Your Happiness

We all want to be happy, or rather happier, than we are right now. Feeling happy is like having money—the more you have, the more you want. And it’s a good thing to desire happiness.

When you are happy, you are a pleasure to be around, more productive, and your days feel better. To me, the happier a person is, the better the quality of their life is.

Do you know that you have control over your happiness? Things we do and don’t do affect how good or how terrible we feel. Hence, the hack to happiness is by adopting habits that will trigger it.

In this list, you’ll find 14 habits you can practice daily to enjoy happier days. Read on, practice these daily habits to improve your life, and when you see how happy they make you, you’ll wish you had started practicing them earlier.

Practice Gratitude

Life indeed has its fair share of problems, but dwelling on them will not make them go away, and neither will it make us happy. To enjoy happiness, you have to focus on the great things happening around you and to you, no matter how little they are.

If you look at your life and around you, you’ll see too much to be thankful for: the roof over your head, the food in your fridge, the life of your family, the beauty of your surroundings, and the gift of friends. I can make an endless list for you.

These beautiful things are as real as the challenges you have, so it’s not deception to focus on them. When you put your mind on them, they’ll give you the opposite of the worry that comes from paying attention to the negative things. They’ll make you happier.

One thing that will help you develop this habit is journaling. Challenge yourself to write down a number of things you are thankful for every day. Don’t just write them mindlessly; instead, consciously be grateful for them intentionally.

Connect with Nature

Nature has a special ability to inspire us and make us feel calm, good, and happy. I don’t know how it does it, but I know I’m not the only one who feels this way.

Have you ever been stressed but felt relieved when you sat by a river? That’s what I’m talking about. You can feel nature in many things, the trees in a park, the cool evening breeze, the songs of birds and more.

Try to carve out time every day just to experience nature. You may not immediately figure out how it works, but you may notice that it elevates your mood.

Stay Active

One sure way to feel good is to get your body moving. Exercise makes us feel free and good, and these feelings contribute to our happiness. If you feel scared or uncomfortable when you think about exercise, you probably don’t understand it enough.

Exercise isn’t just pushups, squats, and weightlifting. It’s also dancing, hiking, and participating in sporting activities like basketball and tennis with your friends. So, you can have a lot of fun while still having good exercise.

There are many health benefits of exercise, and among them are weight management and limiting chances of having chronic diseases. It can also help you sleep better. These advantages still contribute to your happiness, so when exercise isn’t directly making you happy, it’s doing so indirectly.

Make time for exercise every day. If you can spare up to 25 minutes daily to move your body, you are on the path to happier days.

Forgive Yourself

I understand the feeling of making mistakes and feeling bad about it. I don’t ever see myself doing something hurtful to someone else, even unintentionally, and not feeling anything. And if you’re anything like me, you’ll probably feel bad after such a mistake.

However, I noticed that this personality made me carry the weight of my mistakes around a lot. I would do something I wished I hadn’t and beat myself up for it for days. This led to me feeling sad about past actions and walking on eggshells around others to avoid hurting them unintentionally. Some depressing stuff if you ask me.

I found freedom in forgiving myself. I realized that my mistakes do not define me and that I will still make a lot more in the future. The key was to see them as things to learn from, not stuff to drown in.

I also learned to live freely and not walk on eggshells. I was doing my best not to hurt others, and that was enough. When I made mistakes, I genuinely apologized and did what I could to make it right again, then kept enjoying living my best life. I wasn’t going to live a life that felt like I was in prison.

Forgiving myself and living freely made me happier. I’m positive it will definitely work for you, too.

Celebrate Small Wins

I bet if you scrutinize your last seven days, you’ll find some small victories. You may not consider these victories to be a big deal, but they are. Big wins don’t come every day, week, or even month, and we can’t always wait until we achieve them before we celebrate.

So you want to start a shop? Paying your rent is a win. The proof is that you just did what many wish they could do. Another win is moving your products or service tools and equipment in. You were probably worried about it because of the load, and now you’ve done it.

More wins? Officially opening your shop, making your first sale, and making your first thousand or million, depending on the value of your currency. Besides this example, there is victory in moving to a new house, staying one month at your new job, and going through your first day at the gym.

Recognizing these things as stuff worth celebrating is a path to happiness. When you start to celebrate them, you begin to feel like you’re making progress in life and business, and this will make you feel happier. Plus, you will feel motivated to do more and achieve more, and the more you achieve, the happier you will be.

Cut Down on Screen Time

There’s a world outside your screens to explore. There are people around you with whom spending time will make your day a lot more fun. While technology has made information and interaction easily accessible and enjoyable, it doesn’t mean you should spend all day on the screen.

If you are so attached to your screen that you hardly ever have any face-to-face conversations or take time to do some exercise, then it’s probably time to cut it down. Our devices were made to enhance our lives, not replace it.

A good way to cut down on screen time may be to set some boundaries. For example, you may decide not to use your devices for the first hour after you wake up and the last before you sleep. You may also explore your phone for settings that limit the use of certain apps you can’t do without.

As you focus more on life outside your screen, you’ll see that there’s a world of happiness you’ve been missing out on.

Be Kind

No matter what you have, you can show kindness because kindness is not about how much you spend. While there are kindness options that require money, like paying someone’s bus fare or buying a surprise gift, there are those that will take nothing from you, like giving a compliment, holding a door, or congratulating them for an achievement.

When you do these things, it can make you feel good about yourself. And when it becomes a habit, you’ll find that you will be a happier person. Plus, theres that thing they say about the good you give out coming back to you. There will be people who would love to reciprocate your kindness. You won’t expect it, but when it comes, it’ll bring a smile to you.

Also, being a kind person makes you liked by many people, and doesn’t it just feel good to be liked?

Keep Your Space Decluttered

If I’m in a space filled with too many things, my mind feels clogged. I love free spaces, and that’s why I don’t have many things in my room. Before I buy a new thing, I check to see if it’ll fit into my space, and if it doesn’t, I won’t buy it, except if it’s something I must have.

I love a space that is not just as free as possible but also neat and arranged because that’s where I feel more relaxed and at peace. If you want to be happier, try freeing up your room and house more and keeping it organized, and you should notice positive changes.

If something is no longer useful, let it go. That dress you no longer wear, that shoe you said you’d repair six months ago but never got to it, the old bedsheets you folded in a corner when you knew you’d never use them again, and many other things around. Even those items you replaced with newer versions but still hold onto the old ones without using them.

If you don’t want to throw them away, ask around, and you’ll find someone who needs them. If you have many things you’d love to get rid of and they’re in great condition, you can sell them online or do a yard sale and make some money while creating a more orderly and serene space.

Nourish Your Body

You need your body to be in good shape to feel better about yourself and life, so you should give it the nourishment it needs. Why are you delaying meals when your body is obviously begging to be fed when you aren’t on a fast? It shouldn’t be so. Also, ensure you are eating a balanced diet.

Always have a bottle of water handy, especially during hot weather. With enough food and water in your body, you will be energized and will function well, and you can better do the things that you have to do to be happy. Plus, having fewer hungry and thirsty moments will generally make you happier.

For some of us, it’s understandable that we’re so busy that we may forget when to eat, but this is something we can handle. If you are having a hard time remembering to eat, you can set reminders on your phone for meal time.

Prioritise Rest

There are many things that don’t need to rest often, like the sun, moon and stars. Guess what? You are not one of them. Yes, I know you want to change the world, and if you don’t do certain things, no one will, but if you don’t pause to rest, your physical and mental health will suffer.

When these things suffer, you won’t be able to do the things you are constantly trying to do efficiently anymore, and it will negatively impact your happiness. If you’re not taking time to rest, then you’re making a mistake that your body will judge you for in the future.

Resting isn’t a sign of laziness. It’s giving your body time off so it can recharge and keep performing optimally. It’s not allowing stress to rule you. It’s taking care of yourself so you can be in the best shape to take care of other people and things that depend on you.

By resting, I’m not saying you should sleep all day. You can keep your sleep for at night, but during the day, ensure you occasionally take a few minutes off at intervals.

Try Something New

Many of us have been stuck at certain things for years because that’s what we are comfortable with. It’s good that these things keep us busy and maybe happy and help us make our time more productive, but did you know that you can be happier doing something else?

I’m not saying you should dump your weekly golf sessions for basketball. Rather, I’m saying step out of your comfort zone from time to time and see what lies outside your world. You never know what you’ll find. You may find a happy moment you’ve never had, or better still, you may find an activity that could become your new favorite.

If you’ve never sung at a karaoke, here’s your cue to try it this Friday. Or have you never been to a bowling spot? Can you bake a cake or play the guitar? Volunteered to do something you don’t have professional training for? There are too many new things to try for you that it’s impossible not to find something you can jump on.

Maintain Social Connection

We need other humans in our lives. If we choose to keep people out, eventually, we may start to feel lonely, but as we associate with people, forge new relationships, and play our part to keep our already existing relationships, the chance that we’ll have someone around to keep us happy increases.

Imagine not having someone you can call on right now to attend an event with you. Or winning an award and not having someone to smile at you from the audience while you receive it. Or closing from some hectic work hours and no one to talk to before you go to bed. On good days, the connections you make are the people who will be there to celebrate with you, and on the not-so-good ones, they’re the ones who can support you.

Having great connections makes everything better, but it doesn’t come without work. You have to nurture your relationships consciously. Reach out to your friends and family occasionally to check up on them. Be there for them when they need you. It’s not always easy, but the benefits are priceless.

Be Positive

There are two sides to every unpleasant thing that happens to you or around you—the positive and the negative—and which you focus on determines how happy you will be. Can you focus on the positive side for your happiness’s sake?

You get stuck in the traffic, so what? Turn up the music and enjoy every minute you spend there instead of allowing irritation to eat you up. I’m sure you’ll feel better after fifteen minutes of some hype pop than you’ll feel after fifteen minutes of complaining about the traffic and mouth-lashing any driver who makes a move you don’t like.

When you make an error on a task, don’t see as as another failure but another insight into what doesn’t work right. Looking at it as a failure will make you feel bad about yourself and your skills, and what will that do for you? But looking at it positively will help you remain motivated and happy.

Challenge yourself to be positive throughout today, and I bet you’ll feel so much happier by the end of the day.

Make Yourself Laugh

You really can’t separate laughter from happiness. It’s common to see happy people laugh, and if you do things that make you laugh, you will find yourself happier. I’ve had many issues that have affected my mood, and one thing that always makes me feel better is watching a funny TV show or some skits.

There are countless ways to make yourself laugh. Go to a comedy live show or go to the cinema with a friend and watch a comedy movie. If you don’t want to spend money, there are still many options for you—skits, clips from shows, comedy podcasts, light conversations with friends, and many, many, many more.

Make a conscious attempt to laugh daily. Look for something to do that will make you laugh, even if it’s for a few minutes daily. There’s something I do that’s not for everyone, but if you think it will work for you, you may try it and see how it goes. I let something funny play while I work. It could be a YouTube video, a Netflix special, or a podcast. It may be distracting for some people, but it works well for me.

These habits may seem small to you, and some may even be too simple to adopt, but they will improve your life in big ways. You don’t have to do all of them. Just pick as many as you can handle, even if it’s only one, and start from there. With these habits, I can bet you’ll live a less stressful life and enjoy your life more.

I love to hear from you, so please drop a comment if you have experience practicing any of these habits, if you want to try a new one, or if you just want to say hi. Also, kindly show this article to a friend or family member.