“Live each day as if your life had just begun.” – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

If you are feeling down, there are ways to boost your spirits so that you have a better feeling and more positive outlook. Life is too short to be down in the dumps, particularly for no reason. So, here are 10 simple ways to uplift your spirits and feel better about you and the world around you.

Aromatherapy

This is a form of therapy where you breathe in the scent of essential oils which triggers a positive reaction in your brain. This is because the sense of smell is directly connected to your brain which makes the effect even more powerful. You can use aromatherapy for just a few minutes a day to help boost your mood and liven up your spirits. Also, you can use soy candles that have been infused with essential oils for a long-lasting effect.

Celebrate Your Victories

Even if they are only small ones, you should take a little time to celebrate and appreciate what you have accomplished. You will need to match your celebration to the accomplishment, so if you completed a task early, take a few minutes for a tea or coffee break or high five your co-worker. The larger the task completed, the more you should plan to celebrate in order to appreciate what you have accomplished. Too many people overlook what they have done in life and recognizing those moments, even small ones, goes a long way towards lifting your spirits.

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say, I used everything you gave me.”– Erma Bombeck

Create a Happy Place

It’s fair to say that most people have heard of the proverbial “happy place” from comedy movies and television shows. However, the technique of creating a place where you can be happy is a well-known technique for pulling people out of a stressful situation. It starts by creating a room that is free of clutter such as your bedroom, den, or study. Place things inside the room that can take your mind off the stress of the day and spend from 15 to 30 minutes relaxing. You’ll find that your happy place can indeed help you feel better.

“Everyone has inside them a piece of good news. The good news is you don’t know how great you can be! How much you can love! What you can accomplish! And what your potential is.” – Anne Frank

Face Your Feelings

It’s very unhealthy to try to bury your feelings or make them out to be something else. Instead, face them without judging what they mean so that you can live through it. Quite often the feelings that we have may be confusing or hard to understand such as feeling anger at the loss of a loved one or sadness when faced with a situation that otherwise should make you angry. Emotions are fairly complex, but rather easy to deal with if you face them as it happens and work your way through rather than bottling them up inside. Take a moment or two to reflect on your feelings before it gets out of control and soon you can start to lift your spirit when they pass.

Listen to Your Favorite Music

There is something meditative about hearing favorite songs that pulls you out of a bad mood and launches you into feeling good about yourself. Whether you get lost in the moment of the songs themselves or fantasize that you are the singer performing them to a crowd, music offers a very therapeutic way to boost your spirits and help you feel happy again. It’s always good to take time to listen to your favorite songs during the day while going to and from work or on breaks so that you can feel wonderful again.

Reflect on What is Troubling You

You may be able to vent some of your feelings, but sometimes it is better to reflect and analyze them. Focus on what is bothering you and ask why you feel that way. By reflecting, you can find an answer and go forward. So, if you are mad at yourself for slacking off or not working hard enough on a project, then get to work. If you feel burnt out, take a day off. Look at what you can do and take action, that is the way to start healing.

The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it. – Molière

Set Limits

It may seem strange when it comes to uplifting your spirit that setting limits would accomplish that goal. However, when faced with tasks that are simply too difficult to accomplish alone or within the timeframe that is set, it’s time to set some limits in order to keep yourself balanced. Go to your boss or team and tell them that working 60 or 70 hours a week just is not going to get it done. Your request when seen in the totality of the project is reasonable, new goals can be set that are more achievable and will take the stress away.

Take Away the Negative

While it may be impossible to remove yourself from negative people such as your boss or customers that will not let up, you can limit your exposure as much as possible by simply limiting your dealings with them to a minimum. This means that on breaks and lunches you should spend your time with positive people or alone if need be. Getting dragged into negative conversations only makes things worse, so avoid such situations if you can.

“Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.” – Oprah Winfrey

Vent the Right Way

Releasing your feelings can be done in a healthy way whether its writing them down in a journal or talking to a good friend. Set a time limit like three to five minutes and just let go with how you feel. The goal is to diffuse the negative feelings in a healthy way so that they are all released. However, you will need to be on your guard to not dive further into the negativity which is why you need a time limit. The purpose is to express and get those feelings out. Once the time is over, you can start to focus on other things that will help you feel better.

Where You Will Be a Month from Now

Many people who suffer from feeling the blues are thinking about what today has brought them. Instead, focus your mind on the future and where you will be a month from now. By putting things in a more long-term perspective, you can start to pull away from the stress that you are feeling and instead putting your mind to where you will want to be just 30 days away. This can be most helpful when you are overwhelmed at work or things at home not going as well as you like.

“Nurture your mind with great thoughts. To believe in the heroic makes heroes.” – Benjamin Disraeli