Yesterday I came across a very good list of the strategies that will keep you happy. So I am just sharing it with you all hope this helps you to stay happy

Happiness

• Count your blessings and appreciate what you have. People who actively focus on what is going right in their lives become happier people. The more you think this way, the more your brain will lay down new nerve paths, and the more reflexive and second nature this happy feeling will become.

• Practice optimism. Optimistic thoughts are often self-fulfilling. Expect positive outcomes. Always try to see the best in people, situations, and circumstances. Focus on your own life and making it everything you want it to be. People who live life without making comparisons are happier. If you are happy and fulfilled with what you are doing, it doesn’t matter what anyone else is doing or what anyone else thinks.

• Surround yourself with loving, supportive, positive friends and family. Social interactions change the very chemistry within your body. People with strong, supportive social networks live healthier, happier, longer lives.

• Learn to manage stress. Chronic stress increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, obesity, and depression, so managing stress is crucial to your health and happiness.

• Live in the present. Enjoy the moment. Savor the little things along the way. Your brain loves to play—let it!

• Strive to be part of something larger than yourself. Work toward something in which you find significant meaning. Studies show that employees who feel their jobs are meaningful on a deeper level are happier.

• Volunteer. Helping others increases happiness. People are happier giving than receiving. There are so many areas in which you can make a difference.

• Learn to accept what you can’t change. If you can accept that there are things in life that aren’t always ideal but that life can be good anyway, you’ve taken a giant step closer to happiness.

• Work exercise into your daily routine. When you exercise, you change the chemistry in your brain, but, more importantly, you ultimately change the very structure of your brain.

The premium is on winning . Whatever you do, you have to win, whether it is learning to sing, dance or just play. We live in fear of losing . We fear it so much that often, we hear this being said to someone : You’re such a loser!

So what happens when you lose Besides the fact that winning and losing are relative terms, it is really not so bad to lose once in a while. Sometimes, by losing, you could gain more, particularly when you live in a society where you are in constant touch with other people and are exposed to various situations. It is the one who loses, so to say, who actually keeps rolling . This is not to glorify losing, but to turn the focus to a balanced development rather than glorify the obsession to win always.

Shiva and Parvati were playing dice. Each time Shiva rolled the dice, Parvatis supporters squealed with joy while Shivas companions cried in anguish. Parvati won and Shiva lost. Once Shiva lost even the last piece of cloth he wore, to Parvati. Why do you always lose asked the supporters of Shiva. They had implicit faith in his supremacy. Then how come he lost each time

Shiva lost to win. It takes some reflection for this to sink in. In the beginning, all was one, the undifferentiated, motionless One. When it separated into two, the Purusha and the Prakriti, there was Creation, there was activity. According to mythology, Narada, the celestial bard came to the Ardhanareeswara the androgynous two-in-one form of Shiva and Parvati and said he would teach an interesting game that would end the inertia and add spice to their life.

He taught them the game of dice. When Shiva plays with Parvati it is the play of Purusha with Prakriti, inactivity with activity. The wager was a hug. If Shiva won, he would embrace Parvati. Beautiful as that sounds, people were worried because once again then Shiva would envelop Parvati in himself and return to the motionless inactive state of Ardhanareeswara . This would mean all activity would come to a standstill; it would be the end of the world. So it was crucial for Parvati to win, and for Shiva to lose so that activity continues without a break. In Parvatis victory, the pursuit of pleasure would continue Shiva would play another game and yet another to win and embrace . But in losing the game, he won the game of life, he preserved Creation . And Parvati would win again and so the cycle continues. Shivas followers however could only feel humiliation at defeat. They cried and entreated Shiva to work harder while Parvatis entourage laughed. But the game continues, of winning and losing of Creation, Destruction.

To keep activity going, to maintain harmony and balance, we have to experience both, winning and losing. This way, the cosmic play ensures that the cycle goes on. At a mundane level, the see-saw effect creates opportunities for all. When success and failure are experiences in turn, it helps us cultivate several perspectives, to lose gracefully as well as embrace achievements with deep humility.

This is the secret of happy togetherness . In the androgynous form, too, there was togetherness, but of a static kind. There seemed no purpose, no outcome. When they split to become two distinct entities, they could let their creations flourish. And yet they stayed together enjoying the game they played. That is togetherness; where otherness enhances the togetherness.