Motivation Mondays: International Day of Happiness & Spring
“The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things.” Henry Ward Beecher

Motivation Mondays: Celebrate International Day of Happiness & Spring
International Day of Happiness 2017 – Small Smurfs Big Goals

Motivation Mondays: International Day of Happiness & Spring
Happiness doesn’t depend on any external conditions, it is governed by our mental attitude. Dale Carnegie
Happiness is a choice, not a result. Nothing will make you happy until you choose to be happy. No person will make you happy unless you decide to be happy. Your happiness will not come to you. It can only come from you. Ralph Marston
There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will. Epictetus
Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. Albert Schweitzer
Happy 5th International Day Of Happiness and First Day of Spring! What a great way to celebrate the first day of spring by adding the day of happiness to the mix. We could all stand to be happy about something and, as the many quotes shared tell us, happiness is a choice. Get up and dust off the winter woes and reconnect to the fire inside. You have life so enjoy it while it lasts. Do you know how this day started? In 2011, Jayme Illien of Illien Global Public Benefit Corporation approached the United Nations Organization with a proposal to have March 20 designated as International Happiness Day. It was a project close to Jayme’s heart and the UN was delighted to support it. On June 28, 2012, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki moon and the 193 member states joined the United Nations General Assembly to unanimously adopt UN resolution 66/281 which agreed, in part, that “the pursuit of happiness is a fundamental human goal…” Take a step today by taking the pledge and dowload a free happiness guide to shift your mood and thoughts : – “I will try to create more happiness in the world around me” (The Action for Happiness pledge)
READ: International Day of Happiness: 45 joyous things that will make you instantly happy
PLEDGE: Join the movement for a happier world
“Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems.” Rainer Maria Rilke

Motivation Mondays: Celebrate International Day of Happiness & Spring
The spring wakes us, nurtures us and revitalizes us. How often does your spring come? If you are a prisoner of the calendar, it comes once a year. If you are creating authentic power, it comes frequently, or very frequently. Gary Zukav
I am going to try to pay attention to the spring. I am going to look around at all the flowers, and look up at the hectic trees. I am going to close my eyes and listen. Anne Lamott
Why an International Day of Happiness? If nothing else, it is a great reminder to be grateful for the joys in our lives and to remember to help the less fortunate. Just like we celebrate milestones, celebrating this day gives us another opportunity to make that choice to be HAPPY! Did you know that according to the science of happiness, there are 7 habits that happy people share: 1. They build close and meaningful relationships; 2. they perform and spread acts of kindness to others; 3. they pay attention to their overall well-being by nurturing their bodies and mind through exercise, study, and good nutrition; 4. they find their focus and rhythm or what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls “FLOW.“; 5. they build a deep and lasting inner contemplative, spiritual life; 6. they discover and develop their strengths and virtues; and 7. they maintain a positive outlook by operating from a spirit of gratitude, optimism and reflection/mindfulness.

Motivation Mondays: International Day of Happiness & Spring
World Happiness Report 2017 – “The World Happiness Report continues to draw global attention around the need to create sound policy for what matters most to people – their well-being. This report gives evidence that happiness is a result of creating strong social foundations. It’s time to build social trust and healthy lives, not guns or walls. Let’s hold our leaders to this fact” Jeffrey Sachs
According to Dr Rick Hanson who conducts research in the neuroscience of happiness, and data gathered in other World Happiness Reports, there is evidence to suggest that if we want to maintain our overall well-being and neural bases, we need four key supports; 1. sustained positive emotions. 2. recovery from negative emotions. 3. empathy, altruism, and pro-social behavior, and 4. a good dose of mind-wandering, mindfulness and emotion captured attention. So consider that taking action on this day fits in well with things we can do to affect our mind and mood in a positive way. Now before you think the 7 habits and these 4 key supports are out of your reach, stop and think about the mindset behind the thought. It takes some effort to develop new habits but if we make a commitment to honor our higher goals and make our inner and outer lives better, we can do it.
READ: SPRING: First Day Flowers…
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for January and February 2017 are:
FEBRUARY
02/6 – Black History Month, 6, Lame Duck Day, 12, Lincoln’s Birthday
02/13 – 14, Valentine’s Day, 15, Constitution Day,
02/20 – 20, Presidents’ Day, Washington’s Birthday, 24, Carnival/Flag Day, 26, New Moon
02/27 – 27, Clean Monday, 28, Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday,
03/ – March is Women’s History Month, National Nutrition Month, American Red Cross Month, Irish-American Heritage Month, 03/01 – Ash Wednesday and Zero Discrimination Day, 03/03, World Wildlife Day
03/06 – 08, International Women’s Day 09, World Kidney Day
03/13 – 12, Purim starts and Daylight Savings Day, 13, Holi, 14, Pi Day, 17, Saint Patrick’s Day
03/20 – 20, International Day of Happiness/ First day of Spring, 21, World Poetry Day, 22, World Water Day 23 Puppy Day, 24, TB Day
03/27 – 27, Doctors Day
Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2017?
– Join the Daily Post Post-a-day or Post-a-week Challenge.
— Join the BlogHer Writing Lab
More Below!
“Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” Helen Keller

Motivation Mondays: Celebrate International Day of Happiness & Spring
TED TALKS – Dan Gilbert: The surprising science of happiness
Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy. Guillaume Apollinaire
To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him. Buddha
Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude. Denis Waitley
“Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.” Nathaniel Hawthorne
What more can we do to achieve Happiness in our lives? According to Action For Happiness, there are 10 keys to living our dreams and a happier life: 1. Giving – Do for others. 2. Relating – Connect w/ people. 3. Exercising – Take care of your body. 4. Awareness – Live life mindfully 5. Trying Out – Keep Learning anew 6. Direction – Have goals. 7. Risilience – Find ways to bounce back. 8. Emotions – Look for good. 9. Acceptance – Be comfortable with YOU. AND 10. Meaning – Add meaning to your life by being part of something bigger… Our actions and participation in things that matter to us are important aspects of the work needed to create more Happiness in our lives. While there will always be people trying to derail our sincere efforts, it is imperative that we focus on what gives us joy and, sooner or later, those people will fade out of our lives… When we make choices and honor them and keep our lives simple and free from gossip and petty hatreds, we open doors within that tap into that place of delight. It is in every single one of us. Go seek yours!
Have a Happy, Healthy 2017!
Any Zen Antics stories via Goodweb.cn
Positive Motivation Tip: Put a spring in your step and a smile on your face — Be happy!
Motivation Mondays is open to anyone who wishes to share a motivational quote, photo, personal challenge or a post that encourages others to start the week on an upbeat note.
Basic Instructions: Each week, I will have a motivation word to help us create a response. (See listed words for the months above/below)
Email address: You may email or share your post as a comment and I will add it to the round-up of related posts. email it to: contact(@)mirthandmotivation(.)com
Category tag: – Share your post using Motivation Mondays
Twitter hashtag: – Use this on Twitter #MotvnM
Dedicated Page: There is a dedicated page for Motivation Mondays. It has the same instructions and will include other helpful tools and a link to the round-up
Facebook Page: MotivationOnMondays Join our page and add your post and/or any motivational piece you think will be helpful to others.
Facebook Community: We have a Facebook community forum to compliment the page. It serves as another way to share uplifting posts and thoughts. Please join in and add your voice.
Badge: – I created a fun badge using PicMonkey’s free photo editing tools. You can create your own, use WordPress’ integrated tool on your blog or you are welcome to use mine. (see dedicated page)
Tag: – Motivation Mondays
Hashtag: – #MotvnM
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PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: All Photos – via Wikipedia, and/or Happiness via Pixabay
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet
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