Rachael Ray: Rachael's Daytime Talkshow

2010 Guide to a Happier You

Aired on: January 6, 2010

Have you resolved to make 2010 the best year of your life? That's the easy part - now how do you actually make that happen? "You, in fact, can do things second by second, moment by moment to raise your emotional well-being," says happiness expert Dr. Andrea Goeglein. "Only 10 percent of your happiness is actually because of life circumstances ... those are the accidents, the sudden deaths, the loss of jobs, the bankruptcies," she explains. "Those are beyond your control; how you react to them is always in your control!" And those reactions are what can lead to a happier life, so Dr. Goeglein shares simple strategies to get you on track for the new year:
Change "but" to "and" Pay attention to how you speak and watch for words and phrases that will leave you in a negative mood. "When someone comes in and says 'Johnny did really good on his test, but I wish he had gotten a higher score, because then he'd get into the school,' what you've done is just disregarded that Johnny did good," she explains. "There are good things, there are bad things. Let's hold on to the good things!"
Smile more often "Science has shown us it takes a lot more muscles to frown than it does to smile, and when they have done scientific studies where they show people frowning and people smiling, you are rated a nicer person, happier, more intelligent when you are smiling," Dr. Goeglein says, explaining how a smile can impact more than your appearance. "You'll be able to think a lot clearer; the brain opens up a whole lot more!"

Embrace Gratitude Making the time to tell people you love them, or to thank those you encounter during the day will teach you gratitude, which Dr. Goeglein says is a key element to happiness. "Those are the things that are truly important." And, these small changes can mean a lot when life really gets tough. "This is not fairy dust, this is not the thing that you start trying to do in a crisis, these are the things that you do every second leading up to it."