10 Fresh Mindset Habits to Be Happy & Love Your Life Every Day

Happiness.

It’s the one constant that everyone wants. We have all heard the saying that money can’t buy you happiness. Now, I’ve had a few debates with friends over a third bottle of wine many times, and whilst I am happy to test the theory, deep down we know it is true.

That is good news for us. Happiness should be easy to obtain and not require us to break the bank.

So, how do we get it? If it is readily available, why do many of us think of ourselves as unhappy?

Do you ever feel like happiness is one of those elusive things that’s always just around the corner, like a discount that mysteriously ends the moment you click “checkout”?

We tell ourselves, “I’ll be happy when I finish this project... when I lose five kilos... when I finally get a full night’s sleep without waking up in a panic over an email I forgot to send.”

But life doesn’t roll that way. It doesn’t play by the rules.

Life keeps happening, emails keep pinging, and your dog will still find a way to vomit on your only clean rug. Quite simply, its messy, at times shitty, often unfair, but it ain’t going to change. Like an asteroid, it keeps hurtling along on its pre-determined course.

Happiness isn’t hiding at the end of a productivity rainbow or waiting for everything to be perfect. Because if that were the case, we’d all be completely and utterly screwed.

The truth is, most of us are sprinting through life in survival mode. We are just trying not to lose our minds in traffic, spill coffee on our only decent outfit, or scream into the void when Netflix asks, “Are you still watching?” like it’s judging your life choices.

Now that we have all of that out of the way, let's put on our positivity hats. Happiness isn’t this big, mystical, spiritual enlightenment moment reserved for the fortunate few or morning people. Nope. It’s hiding in plain sight, in small, doable mindset habits that don’t require a total personality overhaul or a Pinterest-worthy life.

We don’t need to fake a smile or pretend everything’s fine while internally screaming. We just need a few fresh shifts in how we think, respond, and view our gloriously messy lives.

This list isn’t about being unnaturally peppy or waking up at 4am to journal and cold plunge into an icy lake to feel alive. It’s about real happiness. The tiny, practical tweaks that can actually make you feel better without having to run away to a tropical island and ghost everyone you know.

Try one, try them all, or just read and pretend you’ll do them. Either way, your brain will appreciate the effort.

1. Choose Happiness First

Happiness often feels like something we’re supposed to chase.

Like it’s hiding in the next job, the next relationship, or behind that next clean kitchen bench. That is pure bullshit - it’s not. It’s actually sitting there, quietly waiting for us to notice it before the world barges in with urgent emails, screaming toddlers, and some overpriced subscription renewal.

You get to choose to start the day either happy or not happy. It’s pretty simple—the old glass half empty or full theory. If you start your day with a pessimistic attitude, your day will continue with this script. Look, the challenges will remain, but they aren’t going away; the way we look at them makes a great impact on how we actually perceive them and how much we let them affect us.

So, before life gets loud, take 60 seconds in the morning and ask yourself, “What would choosing happiness today look like?” Maybe it’s not yelling at traffic. Maybe it’s tapping the steering wheel to an embarrassing playlist instead of eyeballing the next car. Or just not punching the printer when it jams (again).

You don’t need to fake a perma-smile or pretend everything’s perfect. You just choose one tiny thing that brings joy and hold onto it like your life depends on it. Because in a way, it kind of does.

2. Laugh at the Chaos

Life is like a teenager’s room. It’s just fucking messy, and while you can continue to yell at life, or your kids in this fable, hoping for a different outcome, we often have to accept it as it is.

Life is absurd. It throws curveballs when you’re already juggling flaming torches. But what if we shifted our mindset? What if, instead of resisting the chaos, we laughed at it?

Forgot your password for the 700th time? Laugh. Spilled coffee down your shirt just before a meeting? Laugh. Checked the important email 20 times for errors and then saw one in the heading a second after you sent it. I actually did this with this blog - I got the fucking heading wrong after checking and posting it. But that's life!

Got caught in the rain with no umbrella and your groceries disintegrating into paper sludge? Yep—laugh.

As I have said in other blogs, all we can do is try our best, and that is really all we can ask of ourselves. We are going to make mistakes, and that is life.

Humour doesn’t fix problems, but it disarms them. It tells your brain, “Hey, we’re okay, even if we look like a drowned rat right now.” That inner chuckle is a kind of rebellion. A moment of light in the madness. A bit of a "fuck you" to the crusty parts of life.

And honestly, sometimes laughing is the only thing stopping us from crying or dropping-kicking our laptop into the neighbour’s yard. It lets us know we are in control of our reaction and we aren’t a whimpering mess, crying in a little ball, complaining about the challenges of life and that we have zero control.

3. Redefine Success

You live your life, and let others live theirs. We are different. You might like chicken; I might like steak. And that is, ok? Differences and diversity are what make the world tick. No two people are identical, including identical twins, so why do we live with the unrealistic assumption that the same things will make us happy, to the same degree, if at all?

We all want different things out of life, different things make us happy, and that’s fine.

Stop the fucking constant comparisons. Some people will be better off than us, and others less fortunate. All we can do is be happy with the cards we have been dealt, instead of wishing for what others want.

Success isn’t a one-size-fits-all situation. Yet so many of us are racing to some imaginary finish line we didn’t even sign up for. More money, a bigger house, the abs of a Greek god, all while baking sourdough and raising emotionally intelligent children? Yeah, good luck.

But what if your version of success is something simpler, saner, and actually yours? Like finishing a book, going to bed on time, eating a bit healthier or having small wins and enjoyable experiences for what they are.

Start redefining success on your own terms. Not society’s. Not your boss’s. Not your aunt Karen’s. Your version might be wildly unsexy to the outside world, but if it makes you feel content, grounded, and maybe a little smug in your pyjamas at 8pm, then you’re nailing it. Now that brings happiness.

4. Accept What You Can’t Control

Control is seductive. We all secretly think that if we plan, micromanage, and triple-check everything, life won’t mess with us, and we have every scenario covered.

But life, that cheeky little rascal, does not care about your colour-coded Google Calendar. Whilst we can’t always control life’s events, we can control how we react to them. And the more you resist change and try to control more, the more it will impact you.

I think we all know people who are control freaks. Do they really seem happy? What happens when someone throws a spanner in the works? It really impacts them.

And I think we all know people who are the opposite. They go with the flow and accept a shit sandwich will occasionally be served. Now they are the happier of the two.

Accepting what you can’t control isn’t giving up. It’s giving yourself a break. You are not a demi-god or a master puppeteer controlling everything with a movement of the strings. You can’t control the weather, other people’s moods, traffic, or whether your kid is unable to pick up a wet towel. But you can control how you respond.

So breathe. Shrug. Laugh. Cry a little if you need to. Then move on. Letting go is not weakness. It’s actually the strongest flex you can do. And best of all, it’s drama-free and it just lets you get on with it.

5. Be Kind to Yourself

You have to live with yourself every minute of every day, so don’t be your own worst enemy. That simply doesn’t make sense at all.

Would you talk to your best mate the way you talk to yourself sometimes? “Wow, you really screwed that up. Useless.” “Why are you so tired—you’ve done nothing.” “Eat another biscuit, why don’t you?” Yeah, not exactly compassionate.

We are human. We are not machines. You don’t have to be on, productive, or positive 24/7. So cut the inner critic some slack. Give yourself permission to nap, to feel flat, to binge a series, and call it ‘self-care’. Have the extra drink and the plate of yummy fries, and simply enjoy being an imperfect human in your stained tracksuit pants every now and again.

We only have one crack at this life, so let’s just fucking enjoy it.

Kindness isn’t just for others. It’s for you, especially on the days you feel stupid in a world of high achievers. Speak kindly to yourself. You’re doing better than you think.

6. Find Your Joy Triggers

Joy doesn’t always arrive with a grand entrance and violins playing. Sometimes it’s in the dumbest little things. A fresh coffee. For me, it’s a sprinkle of feta cheese on fried eggs in the morning or a cheeky muffin when I don’t really need it as a mid-morning treat. That one meme you send to all your friends. The smell of a new book. Or watching someone trip (harmlessly) and doing that awkward shuffle-recover thing.

Identify your joy triggers—the simple, odd, personal things that light you up. Then, deliberately plant them into your day like little bombs of happiness. Remember what we said at the start: money doesn’t buy happiness. It's interesting to see that these little triggers don’t cost much at all, unless your trigger is a Rolex watch.

They don’t need to make sense to anyone else. You don’t need to justify them. You just need to know that when the joy bomb goes off, everything feels just 10% better—and sometimes, that’s more than enough.

7. Choose Curiosity Over Judgement

Judgement is easy: “They’re wrong.” “That’s stupid.” “Why would they post that?” But curiosity? Now, I don’t want to be totally bitchy here, but it seems that those people who are unhappy with their lot in life are the most judgemental. They want us to swim in their swamp of misery. Fuck that; they can swim alone. That’s where the magic is.

Judgements are like assholes—they are everywhere. We don’t know what is happening behind closed doors or the façade of happiness others may be showcasing. Instead of judging, which frankly is the easy option, let’s step back and try to show empathy or at least try to gain some understanding.

What if, instead of instantly judging a situation or yourself, you asked, “I wonder why that happened?” or “What’s the story behind this?” It softens your reaction. It opens a door. It replaces tight, anxious certainty with the possibility of learning something—even if that something is, “They’re just having a bad day.” We don’t know everyone’s back story, and it's not going to help the cause by trying to impart our version of wisdom or finding fault to get the upper hand.

Curiosity isn’t passive. It’s powerful. It makes you gentler, wiser, and way less cranky about stuff you can’t change.

8. Make Your Body Feel Good

We’ve been fed a steady diet of Instagram stories, so-called aspirational bullshit, and ideal body goals for so long that we forget what our actual body wants and the fact that genetics has a say in the situation. Also, remember we have different family structures, lifestyle choices and financial capacities.

It doesn’t care about six packs or squats if it’s running on three hours of sleep and toast. We all lead our own lives, and whilst I would love to run a 160-mile race, I have too many kids, too little money, and genetics that have slammed the brakes on that. And I am perfectly fine with that.

But just because we can’t run a marathon at a world record pace doesn’t mean we can't look after our health. Isn’t it amazing what some basic healthy lifestyle choices can have on our physical and mental state?

Start asking yourself: “What would feel good right now?” A stretch? A walk? Dancing badly in the kitchen? Going to bed early instead of watching one more episode of that weird series you’re not even enjoying anymore? Also, don’t get me started on reels. I love them, but it sends me down a time vortex, which makes the film "Interstellar" seem like a weekend trip away.

Joyful movement, proper rest, nourishment that doesn’t come from a vending machine—it all matters. Not because you’re trying to change how you look, but because your body deserves to feel good. I know this is a contradiction from a previous mindset where I said to eat fries in crappy tracksuit pants, but I’m sure we can all realise the importance of moderation.

Treat it like your ride-or-die bestie. Because that’s exactly what it is.

9. Be Fully Present

I’m the first to admit that I am often occupied with emails, meetings scheduled for tomorrow, or next month’s bills, mentally living in a time zone that is completely different from what is actually taking place in front of me right now. I'm living for the future instead of the now. It’s something I need to remind myself of often. How many of you are in the same boat?

You don’t need to be mindful every second of the day. Life simply can’t accommodate this. Sometimes we need to zone out, as there are other pressing issues that demand our time and focus. But the trick is to build in small moments of real presence.

But it is still important to be present at important times of the day. This may be when the kids come home, when a friend needs a chat, or when a spouse simply wants to catch up on what has been happening in their day. It is at this time that we need to pay them our undivided attention. Think of how you would feel if you had something important to discuss, but the other person is too engrossed in their phone.

Being present is simply taking the time to absorb what you are doing. This could be looking someone in the eye while they talk, tasting your food instead of inhaling it over your keyboard, or actually noticing the water as you wash your hands.

These moments are micro-vacations for your brain. They say, “Hey, this is what life actually feels like when I’m not distracted, stressed, or doom-scrolling.”

Presence is underrated. But it’s where the best bits of life live. Don’t look back wishing you had paid more attention to your loved ones or didn’t get a chance to watch a sunset, because you thought an email was more important or a reel more entertaining than the person in front of you. The person, who is probably more important than anything else to you, but we feel like we can treat them like second-hand furniture.

10. Keep Perspective

How many times have we heard the saying "Don’t sweat the dumb stuff"

Everything isn’t always black and white, all or nothing, where a wrong turn leads to the destruction of your life. Luckily, life doesn’t come down to selecting the right wire to turn off an earth-shattering bomb.

Remember, we are all human, we all make mistakes, and we all get caught up in the dumb stuff. The late courier. The annoying email. That thing you said in 2017 that still haunts you at 2am. But zoom out a little. Does it really matter?

Perspective isn’t about dismissing things that hurt or annoy you. We are allowed to be pissed off. Instead, it’s about asking, “Will this still bother me in a week? A month? A year?” And if the answer is no, then maybe you can let it go a bit sooner.

And sometimes you simply need to remember "You can't reason with stupid!"

Look, we all try to make the best decisions based on the information we have, and at times, our decision-making is not the greatest. If we take a wrong turn or make a mistake, we have to accept it and move on. In reality, it can be fixed or isn’t really that consequential. Remember, in most cases, there is always a solution.

Sometimes, the best mindset habit is simply not to take everything so seriously. Life’s weird, and people are messy. You’ll mess things up, and so will others, but you’re still here, still learning, still trying.

And honestly? That’s more than enough.