Choose Joy...Today and Everyday

How are you feeling today, dear friend?

One of the most transformational things I’ve learned on my journey is that we get to choose how we want to feel, everyday.  Most of the time, our emotions come up automatically, unbidden, in reaction to our circumstances.  We forget that we actually have the freedom to choose how we want to feel.  Do we want to stay in the fear, the frustrations, the grief?  Or do we want to choose a more positive, more healing way to feel?  A while ago, I made the conscious decision to choose to live in joy instead of wallowing in lower vibrations.  I choose joy, today and everyday.  

We all need joy!  Joy and happiness are essential to our human existence.  Happiness like a burst of pleasure or excitement that is related to something happening in the moment…and that is perhaps momentary and fleeting.  I think joy is more internal and more sustainable than happiness, more solidly rooted in a sense of serene well-being, as though you are at peace with yourself and with the world around you.

I’ve found that choosing joy can open the way to more inspiration, more imagination and creativity, to a greater sense of satisfaction and fulfillment.  It can create the foundation for healthier relationships, with yourself and with others - when you feel joyful, those around you will feel it too.  Joy is contagious!

But I want to be clear.  Choosing to feel joy everyday doesn’t mean ignoring the difficult situations and emotions, the grief, the pain, the fear, the frustrations.  Not at all.  And choosing joy can actually be really challenging.  It’s sometimes easier to muck about in these negative feelings than to intentionally shift our mindset, to set a different emotion course.  But I believe that choosing joy as your baseline emotion is a declaration of hope, a show of courage in the face of those difficulties.  It’s a more positive and useful way to face them.  And by choosing joy, you have the possibility to find small moments of peace and happiness, no matter what is going on in your life.  Joy allows you to see the world through a positive lens.

If we consciously choose to cultivate joy as much as possible it will soon become a sustainable state of mind and heart.  There are many ways to do that, I’ve written about it before, HERE and HERE.  These are my 6 favourite ways and little rituals to cultivate joy, everyday, so that I can use that high-vibration energy to face every challenge that comes my way.

1. Make joy your daily intention.  It all starts with your choice, your intention.  How do you want to feel today?  What vibration do you want to embody and to carry with you into the world?   Make joy your daily intention, make it your mantra to firmly install that choice in your heart and mind.  Any time you waver or wobble on your joyful path, any time you feel difficult emotions rise or face challenging situations, remember your intention and your mantra…“I AM JOY”.   That simple phrase, the invocation of your intention, provides your light at the end of the tunnel.

2. Wake up and smile.  I’ve experimented and discovered that if I smile at myself and at everyone I see when I first get up, it completely impacts the energy of my day, makes me feel instantly happier, it makes everyone I smile at smile too.  And the whole day is sunnier.  Who can possibly feel grumpy or sad or lonely when you smile broadly with true joy in your heart?  Smiling when you wake up is like putting a little stake in the ground to claim joy for yourself and for all those around you, every morning.  Smile as much as possible all day long…it’s the most effective way to communicate your joy to the world.

3. Leave reminders for yourself. I’m a big believer of leaving reminders for myself in the form of amulets, tokens, signs, special objects. They are like wayfinders, subtle symbols marking my path through life, helping me to remember what is most important for my journey.  I have a number of joy reminders including a beautiful mug that I use to drink my tea every morning.  It reminds me that I hold my joy in my own hands…and that it’s my choice to cultivate it.

4. Start a Joy Journal.  I have a little red notebook (red is the colour of joy, abundance, protection - see HERE).   I write down two or three things that bring me joy each day, and any little notes and quotes that remind me of joy. It’s a great thing to do at the end of the day.  Remember, we can find joy in the tiniest things such as enjoying a really nice cup of tea on a quiet morning or seeing the blue sky after many grey days, such as getting a hug from a dear friend. The more you notice, the more you find joy.  It’s sort of like a gratitude journal, but with a mindset for joy.  Hope you will try it!  

5. Do things that open you up to joy.Consciously make choices to do things that bring you joy, any level of joy.  This could be simple things like reading a book with a cup of your favourite tea, listening to beautiful music or having a chat with a dear friend.  It could be creative things, such as writing, painting, cooking, gardening, sewing… It doesn’t matter if you’re good at it, what matters is that you enjoy doing it.  Or start a project to plan a new adventure, a new experience.  I have a firm rule in my life:  if it doesn’t bring me joy (at least a little bit), I’m not going to do it anymore.  It’s always my choice.

6. Practice yoga and meditation. A personal yoga and meditation practice is one of the best ways you can find to build an awareness of your emotions, to see them more clearly.  And it can be a source of deep-rooted joy. Within the HUM home practice resources, you will find our Intention-Based yoga practices.  Try “I AM JOY”, a short sequence which is all about cultivating joy - it is about BEing joy and about luxuriating in the process, the breath, the movement. Click HERE to discover the I AM JOY Yoga Practice.

Don’t worry If you can’t find joy or happiness today, that's OK!  Some days are harder than others. Just remember your intention to cultivate joy and stay open to feel joy some time soon, maybe tomorrow. That intention is already a very powerful step towards feeling true joy and towards living fully with a joyful state of mind and heart.
 
So…how do you want to feel today?  I invite you to choose joy, today and everyday.