Tag Archives: Happiness challenge

Aug11

What I Learned from #100HappyDays

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As of May 1st, I decided to participate in the #100HappyDays Challenge

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71% of people who sign up and commit to the challenge don’t complete it, citing the reason is that they are too busy.

Are you really too busy being unhappy that you can’t come up with one thing each day that made you happy?

That statistic made me determined to complete the challenge. I was already writing in a gratitude journal. For this challenge, all I had to do is photograph one moment each day that made me happy and post it to either Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

What I was really excited to do was fill up my Gratitude App with photos since it was looking a little light in March and April.

But there are a few interesting things I did not expect with #100Happy Days.

On the Photo Aspect:

  • Sometimes, even if you had a great day, when getting ready for bed, you realize that you forgot to take any photos. Does that mean you fail? I’d often take photos of my pooches and post them the next morning. They always make me smile anyway. Is that a cop out for not looking deeper?
  • Some wonderful things in life can’t be captured in a photo – like the way the breeze feels on your skin, or the high you got from a run. So then I’d share a photo of something outdoorsy or a sweaty selfie – which isn’t really interpretive of the real sentiment.
  • This exercise reinforces the power of visualization.
  • You realize that you now have a little piece of each day of your life for 100 consecutive days. That’s kind of cool.

 

On the Public Aspect:

  • Making your #100HappyDays public is difficult. People may start to think you are narcissistic or are image crafting. That’s not the point of the challenge.
  • People will make fun of you.
  • The one who makes fun of you the most may even be your spouse.
  • I now see that you can do this challenge privately instead of publicly. I didn’t think doing it publicly would be an issue; but I’ve learned that this kind of thing is more personal to me.
  • For this reason, I’ll stick to my gratitude journal; but Imay continue to collect a photo a day as a collage for the year!

 The Happiness Aspect:

  • I went through a period of summertime blues during #100HappyDays. I think I would have been worse off without the challenge.
  • On those days, I really had to dig deep to find something that I wanted to capture on photo.
  • This is a great practice for anyone who doesn’t already practice gratitude or who needs to get out of a slump.
  • Some may have found my #100HappyDays posts annoying, but what I find more annoying are complaining posts on FB. You know, those people who never have anything good to say and are just fishing for something.
  • If you tend to be a Debbie Downer or find yourself posting negativity, force to edit yourself and deliberately post something positive. You find that it’ll help you feel more positive.

I’m glad I participated in #100HappyDays. Yes, I’d recommend it or some other way, whether public or private to document your gratitude. Here are some resources for you:

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Food

There’s not much cookin’ going on this week!

Dinners:

  • Monday – Golf League – perhaps dinner afterward at The Happy Gnome
  • Tuesday – Dinner at my friend Kim’s place
  • Wednesday – Andouille Sausage with Red Beans and Rice and a side salad
  • Thursday – Leftovers
  • Friday – Shrimp with Zucchini & Tomatoes
  • Saturday – My friend Stacy will be in town. I haven’t decided how we’ll dine quite yet!
  • Sunday – TBD

Lunch:

Breakfasts:

Fitness

  • Monday – Golf
  • Tuesday – Walk 1 hour OR Run 1 mile
  • Wednesday – Walk 1 hour OR Run 1 mile
  • Thursday – Run 1 mile in the am
  • Friday – Walk 1 hour OR Run 1 mile
  • Saturday – Walk 1 hour OR Run 1 mile
  • Sunday – Walk 1 hour OR Run 1 mile

Do you keep a gratitude journal or take photos to chronicle your daily life?

How do you do it?

Do you post publicly or keep things private?

Cheers~
Carrie

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