24 Daily Habits for Happiness

Are you wanting to create a solid foundation of happiness in your life? These habits for happiness are sure to boost your happiness in some way- your way. In this post, I’m sharing the 24 daily habits that I practise to create sustainable happiness.

Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. – Abraham Lincoln

You’ve got these big dreams that you want to achieve. And you know that it’s possible for you. However, you may be in a situation right now that does not make you happy and it feels challenging. Don’t wait until the changes you are trying to make have happened to be happy. To wait to be happy until an external influence has changed or happened is giving away your ability to be happy now. Start cultivating your happiness now, so that you can experience even more gratitude and happiness when your goal or change is here/achieved. If happiness truly matters to you, move the needle towards feeling happy now.

Happiness is important to me and one of my top values, so I make an effort towards it daily. The habits that I share on this post are some of the habits that I practise daily. You definitely do not have to do all of these habits every day to create sustainable happiness in your life. Find a flow and a rhythm that works best for you.

Some things on your daily habits for happiness list may be a daily non-negotiable and some may be practised less often. However, if you value happiness like I do, do something daily that contributes towards your overall happiness. Not only do these habits for happiness add to your happiness, but, most of them can improve your health too. 

Don’t wait to be happy. Start filling up your happiness cup now. 

I play music every day. When I work, while I brush my teeth and even when I go to sleep. Add music to your daily routine. For example, ways that you incorporate music into your daily routine as a habit for happiness include, playing music while you go on walks, as you drive in your car, as you do your grocery shopping and while working out. Select music that you love and makes you feel high vibe. Additionally, I have created this playlist to help you inspire more joy and adventure in your life. You can listen to it here on Spotify.

Dancing always makes me happy. Moving your body daily is a sure way to cultivate sustainable happiness. Find a time during the day that works best for you to move your body, whether it’s in the morning, midday or the evening. Take breaks from your work to have a dance break or a stretch. Dance in your bedroom whenever you can. Go out dancing with friends. Go on walks and talks with your friends.

Find ways to move your body that make you feel good, happy and healthy in your body. My favourite ways to move my body include, walking, dancing, yoga & pilates, YouTube muscle-building workouts, stretching before bed and swimming in the ocean.

Getting daily sunshine exposure boosts your overall happiness and vitamin D. There is also something just so beautiful about watching a sunrise or a sunset. Make the effort to go outdoors daily and soak up some sunshine. You can soak up the sunshine as you go on a walk, read your book outside or simply take the time outside for a pause and catch a healthy dose of rays.

Laughter always makes us feel better. When you get too held up in the achieving and seriousness of life, it’s important to remember to laugh. Whenever I am having a more challenging day, I know that I can still find a way to invite laughter and a smile. Even on your challenging days, there is time for laughter. Laughter can help you lighten up and create a fresh perspective. For example, ways that you can invite laughter into your life include, sharing a laugh with a good friend or your family while having a chat, or watching a funny video and sharing it with your friend.

It’s a no-brainer that spending time in nature is a great daily habit for happiness. Open up the windows in your home every day for fresh air. Make time daily to go outside to spend time in nature and breathe in the fresh air. Going on walks is a great way to refresh your energy, mind and top up your happiness by moving your body and spending time in nature. I thoroughly enjoy my walks by the ocean. If you can, make the effort to also have some time barefoot in nature to soak up the positive benefits that come from having our bare feet on the earth.

In essence, hygge means creating a warm, aesthetic and cosy atmosphere. Also, hygge is taking time out from your daily rush & to-do list to enjoy the good things in life with good people. Some ways that you can incorporate hygge as a habit for happiness include lighting a candle, having a delicious drink while you work, savouring your morning coffee mindfully, reading a good book, decorating your home aesthetically and creating a calm, pleasing and cosy environment. Create moments in your day that add to your happiness. Make the mundane feel that much more special. Share the good things, like good food in good company. Additionally, create an atmosphere in your home and work environment that makes you feel happy. In my 6 Simple Ways to Romanticise Your Life- Add Beauty to Your Life post, I mention that hygge is one way that you can romanticise your life. You can read the Blog post here.

Mindfulness is a great tool that can be practised to bring you back to the present moment. For example, you can practise mindfulness as you eat your meals. Even if it is just one meal a day that you can eat while having your undivided attention. Put your phone away and eat while having no distractions Practise being fully present with the textures and flavours of your food. Overall, incorporating mindfulness into your daily routine can help you feel more satisfied, content, present and grateful in the moment. Thus, improving your happiness.

“Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.” ― Omar Khayyam

Take time to appreciate the big and small things in your life. Can you take the time daily to be grateful for all that you already have and what truly matters to you? I find the best times to incorporate gratitude as a habit for happiness into your daily routine are in the morning when you wake up, before you eat each meal and just before you fall asleep at night. But, definitely don’t hold back on the gratitude. I just recently started using the 5 Minute Journal. It is designed for you to spend only five minutes a day practising gratitude to boost positivity, reduce anxiety, and improve well-being. It’s the simplest, science-backed way to a happier you. You can purchase your here.

Having a daily self-care habit routine is a great practice to help you feel good and increase your happiness. Additionally, self-care can not only lead to you feeling good but also feeling beautiful, increased self-love and feeling well taken care of too. Some self-care daily habits for happiness include a skincare routine, a morning routine, taking a warm shower/ bath and getting enough sleep for your unique energy levels and needs. When you practise taking care of yourself, mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually as a regular habit, it can help you create more sustainable happiness and self-love.

Podcasts are a great way to add to your happiness, knowledge, self-improvement and learn something new. Whenever I listen to a podcast, it makes me happy as I usually pick podcasts related to growth and I am committed to growth. Pick podcasts and books that you enjoy, resonate with and are genuinely passionate about. Podcasts and reading books are on the list of daily habits for happiness, as I believe it’s a great way to spend your time that can benefit your happiness and self-improvement. Rather than getting stuck in the mindless scrolling on social media. This is an important reminder that I also remind myself, when I find myself scrolling on social media too much, “There are better ways that I could invest my time right now that contribute to my happiness.”

You can find out my 5 Self-Development Podcasts That Have Changed My Life here.

Journal Prompt: What makes you happy about listening to Podcasts? What makes you happy about reading books? This can help you discover your why and motivation for listening to Podcasts.

Trusting life and yourself more can help add to your happiness. Cultivating and building trust is a learning process.

The more that I trust myself and in life, the more I feel content, present, less stressed & worried about the future. Thus, happier. You can learn more about how I learnt to trust myself more on My Top 5 Benefits of Living Courageously blog post here. I feel that trust and letting go, can go hand in hand. You can let go because you trust. You trust that you’ll be okay, so you let go of what no longer serves you positively. Learning to let go, can help you release what no longer serves you in a positive manner and focus on the good. Trust and letting go are great habits to practise and come back to throughout all the different seasons and chapters in your life.

Cry when you need to. Laugh when you want to. Feel your frustration. Let love in. If you don’t feel your emotions they become bottled up inside of you. It is important and completely natural to feel and express your emotions. You are only human. You go through cycles and different seasons. And, life is not always easy and certain. Feeling your feelings can create more room for happiness. It may not always feel like it in the moment, but to bring in the new emotions, we must let go of the old emotions. Something that I have learnt and experienced is the way out, is through. Emotions equal energy in motion. So let them move.

Once I started to create and have healthy boundaries in all areas of my life, I became a lot happier, more peaceful, content and healthier. You can read more about boundaries in my post 24 Life-Changing Lessons That I’ve Learnt as a 24-year-old here. Boundaries are lesson number 17.

Having personal and social media boundaries is an amazing habit that can help you increase & mintain your happiness. It sure has improved and benefited my personal happiness. An example of a way that you can implement the habit of boundaries when it comes to social media includes muting or unfollowing Instagram stories and posts that you are watching just for the sake of watching. It can be so easy to be involved in what everyone else is doing. But, if it is not adding value to your life, or not making you feel good anymore, it’s okay to press mute or unfollow.

A loving reminder for when you find yourself comparing yourself to other people on social media: Comparison is the thief of joy. Focus on your own lane. It’s you against you.

Limit the distractions that are deflecting you from your true goals and values. The distractions that influence a more heavy, clouded mindset, cut them out or limit them. If you value your happiness and fulfilment like me, you will value implementing this habit to limit your distractions so that you can feel more clear, happier and more focused. Additionally, your feeling of fulfilment can increase because you have more of your time, energy and focus to put into the goals and dreams that you set out for yourself to achieve. Limit the noise. With tons and tons of resources, opinions and things to do out there, it’s a no-brainer that many people feel confused, not sure and overwhelmed. Something that has improved my happiness a lot has been prioritising creation over consumption. You can find this reminder in my FREE eBook here. Limiting the noise and distractions can help you discern more clearly what’s true for you and what makes you happy.

Journalling has been a supportive tool in my life for self-discovery and reflection. Ever since I was young, I have been writing in my journals and putting my dream life onto paper. Journalling is a practice that can help you improve your self-awareness of your thoughts, actions and emotions. Something that has changed my journalling practice, was that one day I decided to allow myself to write my unfiltered truth. Not just all the loving affirmations and mindset work. I reminded myself, that it’s not like anyone was watching or reading my journals except me. This is a great tool that can be used to help you with your transformation and expression of your thoughts and feelings.

There are many ways to journal. Discover and create a unique way that you need and that works best for you. Overall, journalling is an amazing tool that you can implement into your daily habits for happiness. Additionally, it can help you become your own best friend.

Whenever you are too focused on your own problems, give. It is a sure way to boost your happiness. Smile to a stranger on your walk. Say thank you, and have a nice day to the grocery store assistant. Buy or bake a sweet treat for your housemate, family or friend. Send your best friends a message reminding them that you love them and are here for them. Give your mum and dad a hug just because you love them. Say, thank you often. Let your people know that they are amazing. Action Prompt: What is a sweet gesture that you can give to someone else today? What is a sweet gesture that you can give to yourself today?

This is something that I’ve been doing for several years. And, I can definitely feel the positive benefits of the binaural beats that I have put on to fall asleep to have had on me. I don’t play them every night, but I do play them often. Binaural beats have potential health benefits such as lowering stress, reducing anxiety, improving relaxation and promoting a better mood.

If you have trouble falling asleep, calming down before bed or simply want to feel more relaxed before bed, I can recommend trying out binaural beats. You can search for free binaural beats videos that last up to 8 hours plus for free on YouTube. Alternatively, I can recommend Jason Stephenson‘s videos on YouTube, which I personally use for when I want to listen to guided before-sleep meditations. These recommendations can help you drift away to sleep on a more positive and peaceful note.

Reminding yourself daily of your dreams, goals and visions for your life, is an amazing way to stay grounded, excited and committed to achieving them. Not only that but when you are having a more challenging day and things feel difficult, you can remind yourself that your future is bright and that there are many good things to look forward to. You are not your past, or what you’ve done. You are who you choose to become. – Influenced by Carl Jung’s quote, “I am who I choose to become.”

Journal Prompt: What actions are you taking in the present moment to get to where you want to be? What are you choosing to believe about yourself NOW and have total faith in, that contributes positively to achieving your goals, visions and dreams for your life? There is no right or wrong.

Reminder Affirmation: “It is safe to be clear on what I want and go for it.”

Connecting with your family, partner and true friends is a no-brainer habit for happiness. We are humans built for connection. Send your friends text messages, schedule calls, organise catch-ups and get in touch regularly with those that you love, cherish and appreciate. If you can, do it daily. A phone call, a how are you and a good conversation can go a long way in adding to your gratitude and happiness.

“Enjoy the good things in life, with good people.”

Staying organised, being on top of things in your life and preparing for success, equals less stress and added happiness. I keep organised by using tools such as weekly + monthly planners, Asana for my business and writing down my success plan (to-do list) the night before. This is a habit for happiness that you can implement into your daily routine to improve your happiness. Further, when you are more organised, on top of things and you prepare for success, you can create more ease, satisfaction and flow in your routines as you have systems in place. Make staying organised and prepared fun! Or at least more enjoyable.

When I started to improve my focus, it created a major shift in my happiness. I had a major habit of not focusing on one thing at a time. Improving my focus has helped me simplify my life, complete projects and prioritise what I value & what truly matters to me. Something that I recently had a breakthrough with, was that I uncovered a pattern of ‘that next shiny object’. It was hindering my success and commitment to my priorities in this season/chapter of my life. For example, what is your focus in this season/chapter of your life? You may be thrown tests along the way that offer you different opportunities and choices that present you with that next shiny object. Even though you may be so committed to your goal and the momentum is moving positively forward. That next shiny object looks tempting, doesn’t it? Get your focus and priorities clear. What is that one thing that you can focus on until it’s done?

Journal Prompt: Do an audit on what you say yes to and what you say no thank you to. To add to that audit, what is working and feeling right for you, and what is no longer working and feeling right for you?

People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all.  It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. – Steve Jobs. You can read more quotes to motivate you to achieve your dreams on my Quotes to Inspire You to Live Your Dream Life Blog post here.

I’m a ‘potion’ girl, as my mum would say. I love taking my daily vitamins and supplements that contribute to my longevity and optimum health & well-being. Drinking filtered water and taking your daily vitamins and supplements that contribute to your longevity and optimum health & well-being is a great habit for happiness to implement into your routine. Stay hydrated! Think of yourself like a flower that needs to be watered daily to flourish. Your health is one of your greatest wealths, so take care of it and take care of you.

Learn something every day that enriches your life. Maybe you’re learning a skill that you already know or learning something new. Just don’t stop learning. What are you most curious, interested and passionate about developing and enhancing in your life? Learn something new in that field today, tomorrow and the next. Additionally, there are so many great free resources available out there for you to gain more knowledge. For example, books, Podcasts, Blogs and YouTube videos. Learning is an amazing habit that you can implement into your daily routine for happiness. The Action For Happiness, states that “learning can be a source of meaning and fulfilment, boosting our confidence and helping us develop and fulfil our potential. It’s also associated with more satisfaction in life, a greater sense of purpose and with hope.”

Make your bed in the morning. This is a great way to signal to your brain that it is a fresh start and a new day. I instantly feel happier when I look at my bed during the day and notice that it is made. A cluttered environment can contribute to a cluttered mind and energy field. Thus, a clutter-free and clean environment can contribute to more ease, flow and happiness. Create a habit of maintaining a clutter-free environment. You’ll thank yourself later for cleaning up and packing away the things neatly after you have finished with them. Do it for your future self. 🙂

Thank you for being here. 🙂

Which habits for happiness are you keen to implement into your routine? If you have any questions, kind comments or blog post requests, please comment them below or contact me here.