One of the books I’m reading right now is Marci Shimoff’s “Happy for No Reason.”  You’ve heard of people seeing the glass as half empty or half full, right?  She says people who are happy for no reason not only see the glass as half full, but carry a pitcher to fill their glass all the way up, and top off the glasses of others as well.  Isn’t that an awesome concept?  Think about that for a minute.  How would your day be different if you focused on doing that?

I learned that when Thomas Jefferson said we have the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” the meaning of pursuit at that time was to practice the activity, to make a habit of it (rather than to chase after it).  Practice a feeling of expansiveness (rather than contraction). Here’s a quick exercise from the book. Draw a line top-to-bottom down the center of a piece of paper. At the top of the left column write “Expansive” and at the top of the right column write “Contraction.”  Now close your eyes and think of something in your life right now (example: my relationship with George, the project I just got at work, the volunteer task I was just asked to take on).  As soon as you think of it, notice whether you feel expansive or contracted in your spirit.  No judging—just write it in the appropriate column. Repeat with other things in your life.

Awareness of what expands you reinforces the behaviors, reinforces your appreciation, and raises your happiness set-point.  Awareness of what contracts you is the first step in course correction. To be more expansive, orchestrate the events in your life that you can, and orchestrate your response to the events, circumstances, and people you can’t control.