happiness

If there is one thing that all people on planet earth chase, no matter their race, gender, religion, or creed, it’s HAPPINESS! We can all agree gore joy is an unmatched sensation and it is almost Dezemba guys! Asibe happy for sure. That’s why SKY decided to make this issue about happiness. We ran a cover competition where we asked the SKY nation, what are your top 3 tips to being happy? We received so many entries but could only pick 3 winners. The cover girls gave us some strong answers okuuurrr! Here are their 9 tips all together.

Kimberly Mahloe, 16

Ke sure ka: Reading novels, education, nurturing true friendships

Ke shapo ka: Smoking, fake friends, peer pressure

says: Enjoy your own company

Kimberly

There is only one person in the whole wide world who is with you from the day you are born till the end: you! Learning to enjoy your own company will ensure a happy life because you spend the most time with yourself. If you don’t really like yourself, then that is a great place to start working on this skill. Schedule time occasionally to sit down and do some free personality quizzes online to find out more about yourself. Treat yourself like your best friend! Go on solo dates and be kind to yourself. Once you learn to enjoy your own company you discover new things about yourself. Not only does this feel amazing when you love yourself, but it also means that you can grow and glow into the woman you want to be. You can also easily be true to yourself and not feel pressure to follow crowds.

Maintain good habits

Habits are important because they give you a sense of routine. According to a study done by researchers at Tel Aviv University, having a predictable, repetitive routine can be calming and help reduce anxiety. And anxiety is a common obstacle to happiness. Having good habits can help lead to happiness because you are doing positive things that benefit you and removing an obstacle to your joy, and in a sense, practicing self-care. This is why I heavily recommend maintaining good habits for yourself.

Crows can hold grudges due to their ability to remember human faces, especially those who treated them badly

Tsotlhe Tumisang, 16

Ke sure ka: Achieving my dreams, dancing, a healthy body

Ke shapo ka: Smoking, negativity, fake friends

Emma Marope, 15

Ke sure ka: Education, inspiration, peace

Ke shapo ka: Smoking, bad energy, peer pressure

Tsotlhe

says: Practise self-care

For me it’s food!! Food really fills me with joy. When I am down in the dumps, chocolate and ice-cream comfort me. Eating routinely and properly is also a good way to take care of your body, and a healthy body = a healthy mind. Nothing really puts a smile on my face like a good, tasty meal guys. Dancing and moving my body also make me energetic and all bubbly too. Another means of self-care I practice is sleeping well! Your girl LOVES her beauty sleep. Re shapo ka di eyebags. My room is my happy place after a long day for real. Just choose things that make you feel relaxed and at peace, because that is how happiness will find you. Part of self-care is surrounding yourself with positivity and this includes the people you surround yourself with. Good friends and supportive family create a conducive emotional environment for happiness!

Be an original

The first step I take to being happy is being myself. I do not commoditize myself trying to imitate others, nor do I compare myself to them. I know that I am the only me that exists and I do not have to change myself in exchange for acceptance. This serves as a source of happiness as I do not have to fake who I truly am to impress other people and to ‘fit in’! I don’t want to invite a lot of unnecessary pressure into my life and end up attracting the wrong crowd when I don’t show up as the most authentic version of myself. Me being myself, invites abundant peace and happiness into my life. I walk with confidence wearing my invisible crown knowing I’m an original. Nothing makes me happier than staying TRUE to myself because I am comfortable in my own skin.

Emma says: Accept yourself

Happiness comes with staying true to oneself. The best way to do this is to maintain a positive attitude. Having a positive mentality or positive thinking helps attract positive things. Growing up I have learnt that happiness is a choice you make as a person. Learn to be content with yourself and always look on the bright side. We were born different and it’s something we should understand and accept. To choose happiness you need to stay true to yourself because what makes the next gal happy might not be for you and that’s OK. Everyone has their own journey. But it takes guts to walk yours even when you are alone. Even the richest people in the world long for happiness. So, it doesn’t entirely rely on what you have and don’t have.

Believe in yourself

Happiness comes from within and believing in yourself. Take control of your life and make sure that nothing comes between you and your happiness. Nobody is the captain of your life but you. Don’t be afraid to make a move because you worry you might not be enough to get yourself through it. Making yourself your first priority is an act of self-love. Give yourself some credit. Happiness is not always getting what you want all the time. Sometimes it’s about what you need. Life only comes around once so do whatever makes you happy as long as no one suffers in the process. Believe in yourself and do you boo!

Emma

says: Spread happiness

Empowering yourself and others every day helps spread happiness. When you encourage another person to “keep going”, to “hang in there” you find an unending source of happiness and it’s so amazing knowing that those words can change how someone thinks about themselves. Happiness is also contagious. If you make it a habit to make someone smile, that beautiful feeling comes back to you. But trying to tread the line between kindness and people-pleasing not only takes courage but strength. Make sure you don’t give away so much love, energy and positivity that you end up with nothing left for yourself. Make sure that you choose your own path so that you don’t have to live up to other people’s expectations. My older sister has taught me the principle of giving, now nothing brings me joy more than giving and knowing that I might consider it small but to another person it’s huge.

Tsotlhe says: Let go

Be it a toxic relationship, unmet expectations, or a grudge, holding onto things that hurt me has proven to be a big fat waste of time. One of the most important things I do is to ‘let go’. My happiness comes first before all things and if it means letting go of certain things that block me from being happy, then I will not hesitate to do so. Letting go of toxic friendships that are emotionally draining, letting go of the pain from the past and being free from negativity in all sorts of ways. I wouldn’t want to live my whole life in regret, sorry for wasting my time worrying or constantly crying over things I couldn’t change or couldn’t have. I have to accept, let go and move on. Some ways I do this are writing a letter about how something made me feel then ripping it up and choosing to let it go. Or meditating. It takes guts to let go, but once you do you are free to feel all sorts of things, including happiness.

Kimberly says:

Do the things you love

If you surround yourself with things that you enjoy and make you feel good, they bring out happiness. Including hobbies in your daily routine is a great way to do this. For example, I enjoy reading novels and it makes me happy when I finally get to sit and read one. You can reserve 15 minutes every day to do something you love like dancing, drawing or listening to music. If you feel under pressure to do things you don’t enjoy, just say no (but this doesn’t include house chores!).