Happiness@TheSpeedOfLife: HAPPINESS IS YOURS TO CREATE

Published: Wed, 03/20/19

Edition 165: HAPPINESS IS YOURS TO CREATE

MARCH 2019

772 words of content, including 13 ways to celebrate Happiness and some great resources to expand your coaching skills. Approximate reading time: 3.09 minutes, plus a bonus video to make you smile. And isn't your Happiness worth it?

This newsletter speaks to Leadership, Happiness, and Coaching in your life and work.

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I. Happiness Is Yours To Create

Happy 6th Birthday, IDOH!

The United Nations created the International Day Of Happiness (IDOH) in 2012 on a unanimous vote by all 193-member nations (a rare occurrence!), and the day has been celebrated since 2013.

That UN Resolution recognized the pursuit of happiness as a human right and a "fundamental human goal."

The founder of the International Day of Happiness, Jayme Ilien, was an orphan rescued from the streets of Calcutta India by Mother Teresa's International Mission of Hope charities and adopted by an American mother, who later founded a non-profit organization to promote children’s' social welfare and international adoption.

Mr. Ilien chose March 20, the Spring Equinox, for the celebration of IDOH because it is one of the two days each year when all human beings on the planet share the same day and night (12 hours each) as the earth and sun align.

How Can You Celebrate IDOH?

Smile on Purpose. Because why not?
At the start of your meeting, invite everyone to take 30 seconds to share something that makes them happy. Watch the room light up. Tip: you go first, and share something real, so others understand you’re not joking – happiness is serious stuff! J
Call someone you love. Or at least text them (I’m talkin’ to you, 20-something techie!)
Donate some bucks to a cause that warms your heart.
Offer a compliment on something meaningful.
Say a prayer for someone you’ve never met who needs some positive energy.
Be nice to that coworker who rubs you the wrong way. Choose your mood instead of owning someone else’s.
Notice the story you’re telling yourself about a challenge you face. Try it again, only this time stand up tall and pretend you’re an Optimist looking at the upside.
If you’re in the middle of a KETO or 30-plus or other toxin-removal diet, pick one food you desperately miss and allow yourself a moment. Alone.
Tell Alexa to play Happy by Pharrell Williams.
Be extra kind to a harried clerk. You can be their bright spot today.
Love yourself, even if that’s not your usual narrative. Just for today.
Enjoy this 2:22 video with reminders from around the globe that Happiness is a choice. http://youtu.be/YPeY5BoTsgA

SMILE - Happiness day

“Every day when I wake up I have two options:

to be or not to be Happy”

Remember, Leadership is not about a title. Anyone can be a Leader who uses their influencing powers for Good vs. Evil and strives to create a space where others thrive.

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II. Coaching and Mindset

As a thought leader and mentor in the coaching space, I often receive inquiries from people who want to explore coaching as a profession or a skillset, and who seek advice from someone who successfully navigated that path already. In a 20-minute conversation I can load them up with ideas and resources about coaching. Central to my advice is a reminder that coaching – well, GOOD coaching, at any rate – is not “just” something you learn how to do, like writing a contract or delivering a speech.

You must also examine who you are and how you show up in the world, and deeply understand the mindset(s) that you bring into your coaching conversations.

Recently our local coaching chapter hosted the author and researcher, Marilee Adams PhD, author of Change Your Questions, Change Your Life, a book about the mindset of Inquiry.

Are you a Judger or a Learner? Do the questions you ask (self and others) seek blame or possibility? The book made her a rock star of sorts in the coaching world.

I told Marilee that her book is one of the five top titles I recommend to people who seek to understand what coaching’s all about. She asked, “What are the others?” I snapped this picture to share with her, and now I share with you.

The Portable Coach is a classic that was part of my inspiration years ago when I had the opportunity to work with its author, Thomas Leonard, one of the founders of the coaching profession.

Co-Active Coaching is still one of the best “how to” manuals on the topic, chock full of tools and questions and coaching frameworks that appeal both to newbie and veteran practitioners.

Loving What Is, by Byron Katie, can be a tough read. It challenges the worldview of suffering, and introduces you to The Work, a process to reframe every judgment you make about others.

One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way, plays into the power of tiny changes that gradually build to powerful processes.

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III. The Executive Happiness Coach®

Jim Smith, PCC, is The Executive Happiness Coach®, a global player in the space of Executive Coaching, Keynote speaking, and rapid culture change.

For more tips on Leadership, Coaching, and Happiness, visit JimSmith.Coach and download my report on "The Ten Terrible Habits That Undermine Leadership...and what to do about them before time runs out."

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