Happiness Quotes for an Inspirational Life

Happiness is not about what is going on around you, but rather what is happening inside you. So read these wonderful quotes and be as happy as you can be.

1. “Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” – Abraham Lincoln

2. “Being happy never goes out of style.” – Lilly Pulitzer

3. “The talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don’t have.” – Woody Allen

4. “If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.” – Roald Dahl

5. “I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.” – Groucho Marx

6. “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” – Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

7. “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” – Mahatma Gandhi

8. “Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better to take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.” – Carl Jung

9. “It isn’t what you have, or who you are, or where you are, or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about.” – Dale Carnegie

10. “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” – Dalai Lama

11. “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” – Buddha

12. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

13. “A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?” – Albert Einstein

14. “The secret of happiness is not in doing what one likes, but in liking what one does.” – James M. Barrie

15. “It was only a sunny smile, and little it cost in the giving, but like morning light it scattered the night and made the day worth living.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald

For plenty more inspirational content, check out www.upspirity.com.

Improve Your Mental and Physical Health With Spiritual Books

Reading spiritual books can help you transform your life spiritually. The knowledge you obtain from these books will help you to make wise investments with time and money. Here are some spiritual books that promote positive thinking and nourish your soul.

Metahuman - Deepak Chopra

In this book, New York Times top-selling author Deepack unlocks the secrets to going beyond your present limitations when you want to access something that people think is impossible. You do this by becoming a human with superpowers - metahuman. The storyline includes medicine that will you uncover your true worth. Also, you will get an opportunity to identify your goals and chase after them. Deepak goes ahead and debunks the myths that characterize humans as machines for working.

Celestine Prophecy - James Redfield

Published in 1993, Celestine Prophecy is an adventure novel that talks about different types of spiritual and psychological ideas rooted in New Age spirituality and numerous ancient Eastern traditions. Celestine Prophecy is considered the best selling novel ever published. James talks about a character who discovers nine spiritual insights and twists the plot of the story to make it cornier.

The Power of Now - Eckhart Tolle

Eckhart Tolle wrote this book intending to recognize how people are stressed about the future that has not yet occurred. The main moral of the story is that we should prepare our minds to expect anything. In turn, this reduces the chances of anxiety or getting depressed.

If you need books that will help live your life with confidence and positivity, sign up with UpSpirity.com.

How to make the most of your time to tackle big projects

Determination and creativity can be pretty potent driving forces, but very often when they come up against that pesky roadblock called time, they can really lose their drive. Whatever project you want to complete, carving out enough time for it can sometimes be the biggest challenge. You may have a full-time job or kids, or both, to try and juggle or even if you are at home during the day while kids or at school or with a childminder, you can quickly find your precious time being devoured by a number of chores and errands.

So how do we manage to get enough time to complete our dream projects? Here are a few tips to make sure you have enough time to get the job done.

Make the most of the mornings

This is the time of the day when you are going to have the most energy and focus. It’s not just that you have had a good night’s sleep, but it is also the time of day when you have most time in front you. If you have kids and do a school run, try to time discipline yourself to start work as soon as you get home. This may mean getting up a little bit earlier to get all the household chores, but will help you focus and concentrate once you are ready to start.

Set yourself mini challenges

You’re not going to write a novel in an afternoon and you know that. But, setting yourself a challenge to have set amount of words written by a certain time gives you a manageable task. Hit it, then make another one and all of a sudden you are further down the road than you realize.

Don’t wait for inspiration

If you have zoned off some time, but the creative juices aren’t flowing, don’t sit around waiting for inspiration to strike. Go for a walk, make some coffee or just brainstorm some ideas to get your mind in gear again.

For more inspirational ideas check out the books from www.upspirity.com.

Unpicking the Phrase ‘Happily Ever After’

When you read the words ‘happily ever after’, your mind will almost certainly go to fairytales and the generic happy ending, usually involving a king or princess getting married.. But where does this stock phrase and the concept of the happy ending come from?

We take a closer look at the origins of ‘happily ever after’ and explore this literary trope on a deeper level.

Let’s first take a look at the literal meaning of the phrase. ‘Happily’ may seem self-explanatory from a modern perspective, but it’s interesting and helpful to look at the root of the word anyway. The word ‘happy’ comes from the Old English word ‘hap’ with ‘y’ added to make it into an adjective. The original meaning of the word was closer to ‘lucky’ rather than the general contentment we would now associate with it.

Now moving onto the ‘ever after’ part, this means ‘forever from this moment on’, and is the conventional ending for fairy tales that gives closure to the story by wrapping things up without complication. Typically, this is associated with everlasting love, as many fairytales end with what has long been associated with the ultimate life success - finding a romantic partner and starting a family.

There is one view that this is a bit of a lazy way to end any story, but as many fairytales are intended for children, it’s understandable. On top of this, the content and moral of the story is often more important than delivering a complex or thought-provoking ending.

Discover an exclusive library of inspirational content at www.upspirity.com. We’ve collected together the best eBooks and audiobooks to lift your mood and inspire you to live your best life. Sign up today to enjoy 24/7 ad-free access.

How you can give positive criticism

No matter how positive an outlook someone may have, none of us are very good at taking criticism. Even if it is well-meaning, having your faults pointed out can immediately trigger defensive instincts and we end up feeling antagonism towards the person rather than listening to and focussing on the points they are making.

However, when it comes to criticism, there are ways to be constructive and helpful without making an enemy of someone. Here are some ways you can make your feedback more constructive.

Begin with praise

You can get off on the right foot by providing some positive feedback. You may still intend to point out faults, but pointing out what a person has done well will not only cushion the blow, it will let them know that they are at least on the right track.

Avoid the ‘but’

When you are doling out praise, the recipient may understandable be waiting for the ‘but’ and the kick pivot into negative criticism. How you couch those negative comments is important. So, by saying something like ‘you have done a great job on the plot in this short story and your characterization will improve the more you write’. Replacing ‘but’ with ‘and’ allows you to point out a problem, but do so in a positive manner, giving the person the confidence that they can improve on those areas which need more work.

Reinforce improvements and set targets for them

Operate on the assumption that the person is capable of making the improvements they need and set that as a goal for them to achieve. Convince them that they are already the person who has achieved the sort of improvement you are suggesting and they’ll have something to aim for.

For more uplifting content check out the books at www.upspirity.com.

How to make the most of your time to tackle big projects

Determination and creativity can be pretty potent driving forces, but very often when they come up against that pesky roadblock called time, they can really lose their drive. Whatever project you want to complete, carving out enough time for it can sometimes be the biggest challenge. You may have a full-time job or kids, or both, to try and juggle or even if you are at home during the day while kids or at school or with a childminder, you can quickly find your precious time being devoured by a number of chores and errands.

So how do we manage to get enough time to complete our dream projects? Here are a few tips to make sure you have enough time to get the job done.

Make the most of the mornings

This is the time of the day when you are going to have the most energy and focus. It’s not just that you have had a good night’s sleep, but it is also the time of day when you have most time in front you. If you have kids and do a school run, try to time discipline yourself to start work as soon as you get home. This may mean getting up a little bit earlier to get all the household chores, but will help you focus and concentrate once you are ready to start.

Set yourself mini challenges

You’re not going to write a novel in an afternoon and you know that. But, setting yourself a challenge to have set amount of words written by a certain time gives you a manageable task. Hit it, then make another one and all of a sudden you are further down the road than you realize.

Don’t wait for inspiration

If you have zoned off some time, but the creative juices aren’t flowing, don’t sit around waiting for inspiration to strike. Go for a walk, make some coffee or just brainstorm some ideas to get your mind in gear again.

For more inspirational ideas check out the books from www.upspirity.com.

A man who gave up his job for a struggling family

There are times in life when things seem to fall so neatly into place that it cannot be coincidence. This story is all about a man who was ready to retire, but instead of giving up his job, he did something wonderful – he gave it away to someone who needed it. Here is the tale of the man who gave up his job to help a struggling family.

A man was toying with the idea of retiring from his job. He had worked in construction all his life and he wasn’t sure that he was quite ready to spend the rest of his days sat on the front porch in a rocking chair. He was still debating what he should do when he met a young man he had worked with in the past. The young man had a wife, three children and was struggling to find work. He hadn’t worked for some time and the family was finding it hard to make ends meet.

The morning after, the man went to the union office to submit his retirement paperwork. He had come to a decision whilst talking to his young friend. As he submitted his retirement paperwork, he gave the office the name on his young friend and told them that this young man was his replacement. Six years later, that young man has been employed ever since.

For more about random acts of kindness, visit www.upspirity.com where you will find more uplifting stories of kindness.