The Happiness Board

It’s easy to lose hope, self-esteem, or even a purpose when all that’s happening around you is constant turmoil, but you can make the best of life by finding what makes you happy; a happiness board is a way to approach just that. Since you’ll be able to view them everyday, you will have a constant reminder of the good things in life. These are the things you value most in life, things that give you a reason to keep going. Also, it would add a more personal touch to your workspace, increasing the likelihood of you doing great things and persevering.

Directions:

• Gather materials (post-its, paper, tape, stickers, etc.)

*it can also be on a doc or on the notes app and you can set it as your wallpaper

• Jot down some things that make you happy (ex: favorite music, favorite foods, new hobbies/interests, memorable objects and events, etc.)

• Add decorations to make it look visually appealing and personalized (stickers, washi tape, perfume, pictures, etc.)

• Optional: create some for others and give it away to spread positivity and love

Here are some personal examples:

Raven:

My happiness board never fails to put a smile on my face. It’s mostly yellow post-it notes covering every inch of my wall with bullet points and lists. For example I have one that lists my favorite songs which are mostly K-pop. They are my comfort songs, but also inspire me to work as hard as the artists who make them. For my artwork, I hang it up with washi tape, it adds stripes of color to the black and white sketches. It is something that lightens up my mood and inspires me to be my best self everyday. Also, it serves as a place of reflection and identity as I note down lessons I’ve learnt with time and experience. One specific lesson that really resonates with me is to trust the process and where it leads you.

Dash:

My interests makeup every part of my identity and personality, yet I never pay attention to them sometimes. They are all clustered in my brain, and it’s hard to scramble and remember what I like. It was more of an internal “happiness board” and with everything going around, it was easy to forget what made me happy sometimes or even the small purposes I live for.

That’s when I started using an actual happiness board. I am still pretty new to it, but I feel as if it has kept me more happy with every glance at it. It’s a constant reminder that good, blissful things still exist in this half-corrupted world. I make my happiness board on a note app and decorate it with digital drawings or images. One of my all-time favorite things that has been on the happiness board since day one is drawing. Drawing has presented me with the token of perseverance, something I learnt through failing to recreate reference photos or draw something original.

Happiness comes in different forms, but the sweetest way to achieve happiness is by helping others. You can provide a happiness board to someone you care about to show them that they are valued and loved. After all, joy is contagious and can significantly improve your mental health, especially when it comes from someone else.