When Mr. Right told me to, “focus on the positive,” I decided it can be really hard to follow that advice.

While easy enough to say, putting positive thinking into practice can be another story.

I knew he was right, but I gave an honest reply. I said, “I don’t know how.” And then I went back to feeling sorry for myself over situations that were out of my control.

Something had to change.

Me.

After a good night’s sleep, I woke with a simple plan. I needed to increase the positive in my life. I could no longer afford to let negativity overshadow joy. Creating a joy list made it easy to see all the beautiful, fun things I can do when life gets me down. Most of my ideas don’t cost a thing.

If you want to add more enjoyment to your daily life, make a joy list of your own.

Here’s how:

Step 1. Write down activities that bring you joy.

Think about what you like to do at home, in the community, at work and with people you love. What did you like to do as a kid? What are your hobbies (no matter how dusty they’ve become)? Tip: don’t include things that should bring you joy; only things that actually do (and don’t hold back!).

Step 2. Add more joy to your life.

Choose at least one item from the list to enjoy every day.

Step 3 (optional). After a week, reflect on how adding joy impacted your daily life.

Important note: A joy list should never feel like a to-do list. Each item you included should invoke a feeling of happiness, not anxiety from having “to-do” something.

BONUS: Find ideas from my personal joy list. Click here to download.

Photo by charamelody