- Reach out and do something nice for someone else – helping and being kind not only contributes to the happiness of others, it can also help us to feel happier ourselves!
- Relate to others – it is so important to make connections to other people and to talk - whether these connections are with our partners, families, friends, work colleagues, neighbours or others in our communities, they can all contribute to happiness and resilience. So taking action to build, maintain and strengthen our relationships is important.
- Exercise – and this one’s particularly important for our colleagues who may spend a lot of time seated – get up, move around, stretch… taking care of your body takes care of your mind. They are connected!
- Be aware – we can sometimes be on autopilot, doing and thinking things on repeat. Being more mindful is proven to support our wellbeing. Be aware of your surroundings, try and do things a little differently – travel to work a different way, or try and find out something new about someone, which might also help us to relate better to them.
- Find ways to bounce back and increase your resilience – trying to understand our negative thoughts and feelings can help us to overcome things and not to fall into our thought traps. It can stop us catastrophising things and find ways to cope constructively, accepting what has happened, adapting, and eventually moving forward.
Action for Happiness has a number of resources, including the Meaningful May calendar - https://actionforhappiness.org/calendar
There is also an app which is available free on the Google and App Store.