To be clear, this isn't a "get-happy-quick" post. Rather these are some concepts and mindset shifts that you can apply to your life in a way that makes sense for you.

1. Make peace with your past

I used to drive myself crazy trying to figure out why certain things happened the way they did. Usually it was some kind of negative event that I wished had happened differently. I would replay different scenarios in my mind over and over again, wishing I would have said this or done that, etc.

Doing this stole a lot of my happiness. Even if something wonderful was happening in my life at the moment, I couldn’t fully enjoy it because I was mentally stuck in the past.

Have you ever experienced this?

I’m going to tell you something that you already know, but may need to hear again:

No matter how much you dwell on the past, it will never change it. It will only take away from your ability to enjoy the present moment.

Also, obsessing over negative past events makes it more likely that you’ll recreate those same kind of events in the future since that’s where your focus is.

We’ve all had challenging things happen to us—maybe even things that seem unfair or undeserved. I don’t mean to discount these at all. I only want to remind you to focusing on things you cannot control (like the past) greatly diminishes your happiness and focusing on things you can control has the power to increase your happiness.