“You can be happier.”

A thought by Zig Ziglar (2003-01-01) from his book, Zig Ziglar's Life Lifters (p. 131). B&H Publishing. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Do you realize that you have choice in whether you are happy or not?  You do? 

Zig quotes Dr. Michael Guillen who points out, “Some of us are wired for singing the blues and others for singing in the rain.”  But Zig goes on to say, “Several studies reveal that regardless of what your natural bent is, you can change from optimism to pessimism and vice versa.  When you reach the age of accountability, you can choose to be optimistic or pessimistic unless there is a chemical imbalance—which you can choose to get treatment for.”

He then says, “Feed your mind joyful songs, exciting information, and things that make you laugh or smile, and you have chosen to be optimistic and feel happier in the process. Dr. David Myers says that ‘happiness is chronic.’ Research shows that people who several years ago said they were ‘very unhappy’ or ‘happy’ tend to state much the same thing today, despite changing circumstances in their lives.”  The circumstances don’t make the difference.

“So what do we do to switch over to, as Dr. Guillen puts it, ‘the happiness thermostat’? He says, ‘Scientists suggest to start by exercising, getting plenty of sleep and smiling.’ He says these simple acts seem to trigger the release of powerful antidepressants like serotonin and dopamine. ‘It might make your brain begin to glow, and who knows, even make you feel like giggling.’ Dr. Guillen also points out that happiness has an effect on your body and that the latest studies show that if you're depressed you have a four times greater chance of having a heart attack.”

And then Zig ends this chapter by saying, “Happy people feel that regardless of what happens today, tomorrow will be better.”

So how does your tomorrow look?