Well, here we are. September 1. Time to kick off the Happiness Project. When we last left off, I was telling you about my goals for this adventure. So, it’s month one. It’s time to focus on Health.

First, I chose this focus because I figured I’d need the extra boost to get going. I’ve never been someone I would call “health conscious.” Well, perhaps here and there, but  not anything that stuck around for a while. In the past few weeks days hours I’ve been paying a little more attention, but clearly it isn’t enough.

So, it’s time for me to get serious. And not just for month 1. I’m not interested in a diet. I want, no I need a lifestyle change. So, here is how I’m going to approach it:

Goal 1: Develop a healthy eating plan and include the family. Track our progress.

Goal 2: Get more rest. In bed by 10 so I can get an actual 7 or 8 hours of sleep and get up early enough to get things done before the family makes.

Goal 3: Exercise (and I’m cringing as I write this) at least three times a week.

Goal 4: Get back to journaling (mental health, you know). Blogging = journaling in my book

Goal 5: Get back into the habit of meditating

Goal 6: Develop a general awareness of my health

Goal 7: Drink at least 64 oz of water every day.

Let the games begin.

So I told you before that I was thinking of doing a Happiness Project and given recent circumstances in my life, I took the time to start doing the homework I need to do to get ready for it.

So what does it take to start a Happiness Project? I figured I should start with the categories of what I will focus on for each month. So here’s my list so far:

1. September – Health (I figure I’m going to need a lot of energy to keep up with all these plans I have)
2. October – Organization
3. November – Creativity
4. December – Family (perfect timing for the holidays in my opinion)
5. January – Balance (you know, that thing we pass as we swing from one extreme to another)
6. February – Love
7. March – Challenges (really stretching myself outside of my comfort zone)
8. April – Money (aligns nicely with tax time)
9. May – Laughter
10. June – Attention / Mindfulness
11. July – Positivity
12. August – All areas listed above

I’m taking the same approach that Gretchen took in her book in that every month builds on the former and at the end, you spend a month analyzing your progress in each and identifying areas for a new Happiness Project if you want to continue.

I’m also gathering just a few a ridiculous amount of resources that will help me in my Happiness Project.

The closer I get to kicking this project off, the more excited I am about it. And I definitely need it right now.

I’ve got a few more homework assignments I need to do before I’m ready to start, so stay tuned as I post more of my background research and prep work in case you want to join me in the journey.

Yes, sunglasses. Why, you might ask? Because up until a year ago I really couldn’t wear any. Terrified of contact lenses (and that whole “stick my fingers in my eyes” thing) I stuck with regular glasses. At one point, I got prescription sunglasses but they weren’t the same.

I was used to wearing ridiculous, over-the-top sunglasses. I liked to be noticed. So, when I finally bit the bullet and got contact lenses, my first stop was to buy sunglasses. And that definitely makes me happy.

Here’s an interesting concept: Can you truly MAKE yourself be happier? I’ve been on the fence regarding the answer for a long time. I tend to waver between you can make your own destiny to you need to make the best of what is given to you. But I always end up somewhere in the middle and end up saying the same thing.

I’m not entirely sure.

It appears that Gretchen Rubin had the same questions so she set out on a personal journey: One Year to Focus on Her Happiness. And The Happiness Project was born.

The concept is intriguing, isn’t it? With all the talk about the laws and power of attraction and spiritual teachers and psychological writers telling us to Think Big to Change Your Life, it’s not surprising that a happier life would be extremely appealing.

The Happiness Project is simple in concept: Resolutions + Self Reflection on a daily basis and each month revolves around a theme. For instance, Month 1 focused on Energy, Month 2 focused on Marriage, etc. Gretchen says (and I agree) that everyone’s project is and should be different because everyone is in a different place in life. But certainly some of Gretchen’s resolutions intrigued me:

• Start a collection
• Emulate a Spiritual Master
• Give Something Up
• Ask for Help
• Tackle a Nagging Task (side note: when I read this part, I immediately tackled two nagging tasks and felt much, much better)

Can these simple things really make you happier? Perhaps I should find out. Rather than jump into something like this (as I have the tendency to do) I’m going to do a bit of planning and research and aim for September 1 to start my own Happiness Project. I’m doing this for two reasons.

1. It will give me time to figure out what areas of my life I really want to improve and how to measure whether or not I’m truly happier
2. It still gives me plenty of time to ramp up for the holidays.

If you were going to do a Happiness Project of your own, I first recommend reading Gretchen’s book for inspiration. Then, Check out her blog and the Toolbox site she has set up.

But, if you’re going to do it, let me know. We can do it together and it will make me accountable for really following through on things in general.

What resolutions do you think would work for you? What resolutions would scare you to try?

I love the Olympics. They’ve been on TV and on my mind since they started. The competition, the fanfare, the stories… it’s a smorgasbord of good stuff for me. And it definitely makes me happy. Here’s a few of my favorite highlights right now:

Bode Miller wins his Olympic Gold. Photo from Guardian.co.uk.

Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo win their first Gold. Photo from Reuters.

Alexandre Bilodeau wins Canada’s first Gold on home soil and he did it for his brother. Photo from NY Daily News.

JR Celski wins bronze after making a comeback from a scary, career-threatening injury. Photo from Examiner.com.

This video was sent to me by my mom and I just had to share it with everyone. I loved it and really enjoyed how involved the entire hospital got in this project. Well done!

Everyone has heard, at some point or another, the old tip of “count to three” when you’re upset. Give yourself three seconds to try and calm down and not blow up on someone. It’s good advice for two different reasons:

1. Three seconds can really make the difference between losing your cool and keeping yourself together
2. It forces you to pay attention to your behavior rather than just reacting to whatever comes your way

There is a ton of advice out there on things that you can do when you’re upset to calm down. Things like:

• Take a walk
• Count to ten (when three just isn’t enough)
• Scream into a pillow
• Focus on your breathing
• Journal
• Turn on loud music and dance your heart out

I think you get the idea. What do you do when you’re upset?

Image Credit: http://awesome.ly/2009/07/calm-down-its-just-a-lamp/

Yes, that title is correct. Snow is making me happy this Monday morning. Granted, in a couple of weeks I’ll most likely be singing a different tune, but for now, I’m enjoying it.

And the best part of snow lately? The kids have been having a blast playing in it. What more could I ask for?

I am an avid reader. Ever seen Gilmore Girls? You know how Rory Gilmore never leaves home without a book in her purse? Yeah, that’s me. So it’s a common thing for me to go content hunting on Twitter. I especially love finding lists of people in different categories that might be good to follow on Twitter and I really love finding authors to follow.

Recently, I came across a list from Forbes Woman that was entitled 14 Power Women to Follow on Twitter. On that list was one woman that really intrigued. Her name is Gretchen Rubin. Gretchen has had a completely fascinating life. From her site:

A graduate of Yale and Yale Law School (where she was editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Journal), Rubin started her career as a lawyer, and she was clerking for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor when she realized she really wanted to be a writer. Raised in Kansas City, she lives in New York City with her husband and two young daughters.

With that kind of life, where else can you go? According to Gretchen, she had an epiphany and decided to pursue happiness. She started a year-long happiness project and wrote a book called The Happiness Project. The whole idea is really intriguing me, so I’ve already purchased the book and started to check our her blog and the Happiness Project Toolbox. I’m going to start my own Happiness Project and I’ve decided that 2010 is my year of pursuit. I’m not just going to want to be happy or try to be happy. I’m going to pursue happiness.

Want to join me?