Browse all topics • See what's new
How To Make Yourself Happy: 5 Simple Things You Can Try Right Away
What makes you happy? It’s not your money, your status, or the things around you.
Researched, written by 
Amber & The Team
Updated on July 9, 2023
// We recommend helpful products in our articles. Read our full disclosure here.
What makes you happy? It’s not your money, your status, or the things around you.
Happiness can come from within, in the form of a simple act of kindness, gratitude, or doing something nice for yourself.
Simple activities can give your life meaning and purpose and make you feel happy, even if you can’t always see the good side of every day.
In this article, we’ll explore how to make yourself happy with five simple practices and suggestions.
How To Make Yourself Happy
1. Do something nice for yourself
Doing something nice for yourself is a good way to feel happier.
Doing something nice for yourself doesn’t earn you bonus points or a thank you, but it does make you feel good!
Think about times when you helped yourself, supported yourself, reached your goals, and didn’t let yourself be compared to others.
These are all good things, and these can make a huge difference in your happiness and your life.
2. Think about a happy memory
How to make yourself happy in just a few minutes?
Use your memory to remember a moment when you felt happy before. During a positive event, there is “magic” associated with the moment.
By concentrating on the smell, visual memories, and sound of the event, you can help yourself feel the emotion of nostalgia.
When thinking about a happy memory, try imagining yourself in the situation and focusing on what you were noticing with your senses.
Imagine the faces of people around, remember the tastes of meals, the physical feelings you had experienced.
Sit with these feelings for a few moments to let them settle.
Let it sink into your heart.
Then, move on to the next happy memory.
Eventually, you’ll feel even happier than before.
Researchers have discovered that people who experience a positive sense of nostalgia have a better outlook on the future.
They find that the experience of remembering their happy memories makes them feel better about themselves, and can even improve their physical health.
3. Be grateful
Being grateful increases your happiness.
By practicing gratitude you can begin to appreciate the things that you have in life and see what is abundant.
Many of us live our lives focused on the future, not the here and now, but it is only in the now that we can actually feel joy. The future is not here yet.
The first step to practicing gratitude is journaling.
This is an easy way to begin.
You don’t need to be in an intense state of gratitude to start making yourself happy.
Just start with a few small things that make you feel grateful and write them down.
Writing in a gratitude journal is a great habit to incorporate into your daily routine.
If you can’t find time to write down your gratitude entries, consider creating a gratitude collage.
4. Add meaning to your life
- For some people, adding meaning to their life means giving back to others. You can do this by volunteering your time, money, or doing other helpful things.
Doing these acts of kindness will give you a feeling of satisfaction and happiness.
- Others find meaning by looking for people who inspire them. Do not surround yourself with people who drain your mental energy.
Replace them with people who uplift and inspire you.
- Is your life too full of everything? Look for the true meaning by simplifying your life. This will give you the mental space to reprioritize what is truly important.
Make the most of your time by reducing the number of things that you don’t need.
For example, remove unnecessary clutter from your desk.
Simplifying your surroundings can help you to come closer to what really matters to you.
- Create meaningful relationships with others. A meaningful life includes the ability to feel fulfilled by what you do.
Make time for friends, family, and hobbies that align with your values.
You’ll be happier if you feel like you belong to a community.
It will also make life easier for your family and friends.
5. Avoid toxic people
Toxic people definitely know how to make you unhappy.
The first step in avoiding toxic people is to identify them.
By identifying these people, you can make encounter situations more predictable and prevent conflict.
Likewise, by identifying your own boundaries, you can keep them out of your life.
Remember that you can’t change their behavior, but you can distance yourself.
Here are some signs to remember if you are dealing with toxic people:
- First of all, if a person is toxic, it means that they don’t want you to be happy or change. These people want you to compromise and put up with them, so they won’t change.
- Second, toxic people tear down and bury your boundaries. It’s important that you know your boundaries so you won’t be tempted to bend them.
Also, listen to your own inner voice – it’s rarely wrong.
- Next, if you have a relationship with a toxic person, don’t spend too much time with them. Their negative energy can ruin your good days, and the best way to avoid them is to establish boundaries.
These boundaries don’t have to be rigid – it’s just a matter of setting limits and sticking to them.
6. Embrace your favorite color
Last but not least – here’s something you can do every single day to make yourself happy – enjoy your favorite hues.
Colors have a profound impact on how people feel and embracing your favorite color makes you feel good.
If you are unsure of which color makes you happy, start by considering the meaning of each color.
For example, many people think that blue represents peace and harmony.
Blue lovers have a sane mind and tend to think about others.
Blue is also calming and suppresses appetite.
Think of what blue means to you and how do you feel about these associations.
If you have a hard time deciding, blue is probably not for you, but another color can be just the one next to it.
Once you find which color feels great, here’s how to make yourself happy with it:
- Look at pictures that have a lot of your favorite color in them;
- Wear clothes in your favorite color;
- If you feel creative, consider creating something that is in the color you love;
- Go outside and look for places or things that have your favorite color dominating.
How To Make Yourself Happy If None Of These Work
Sometimes simple things are not enough to bring your happiness back.
In that case, consider talking to someone you trust so you can get helpful advice, support, and encouragement.
There are times in your lives when we need a professional to help us feel happy again, so don’t shy away from that option too.
Nowadays, there are mental health support programs in most countries, and even if that is not available, the internet, free mental health apps, and free books can help you to feel better.
Remember – there is always something you can do to make the situation better.
Even if it’s just changing your sitting position to something more comfortable, or holding a soft pillow for a minute or two – there’s always something tiny that can tickle your happiness hormones.
Like these ideas on how to make yourself happy?
Scroll down for more helpful content below.
"We love to research problems, examine studies, analyze solutions, and present to you the best ideas that make life healthier. You can learn about our editorial standards here.
Have suggestions or feedback to share? Send us a message."