Mood-Boosting Techniques to Brighten Your Day

Dr. Aymee's Tips:

• Take care of yourself. Remember to put your own health first.
• Engage in relationship building. Use AAAA. (Admiration, Appreciation, Affection, Authenticity)
• Play songs you love. Listen to your favorite songs!
• Place objects around you that are reminders of your greater purpose and of loved ones.

Tips from Our Blogger Panel:

• Jo of Jo's Country Junction says: "The first and biggest tip is to look within yourself not at what everyone else is doing to find your happiness... No one knows your circumstances but you, so access your progress or lack of with your own circumstances in mind."
• Kathleen of Kapachino is an outpatient oncology nurse who has made it her mission to give her patients a good experience in the clinic. She says: "When my patients are happy it's easy for me to be happy too."
• Just Margaret keeps photos of her kids and drawings around her workplace. This reminds her of the greater purpose of supporting her family.
• Emily of My Incredible Family is a photographer who finds greater purpose in telling other people's stories through taking photographs. She keeps in mind the bigger picture of contributing to the community and of what is important in life through documenting special occasions.
• Jen from Perfect In Our Imperfections tends to get distracted on email and Facebook. To be happy and engaged at work, she sets a timer for every 15 to 20 minutes to work uninterrupted, and she takes a fun break before getting back to work again.
• Karla of Simple Living Family organizes her work space and fills it with things she loves. She also ritualizes sitting down at her desk every morning with her cup of coffee.
• Lee Block of Post Divorce Chronicles, takes plenty of breaks to clear away the clutter during the day.
• Pat of Mille Fiori Favoriti likes to have her window shades wide open to let in as much natural light as possible while she works. She finds letting in daylight helps her feel happier and considers looking outside a nice relaxing mini break.
• Jennifer of Farm Girl Follies needs to focus on tasks at hand and be organized. Yet her personal life has to be in order before she can concentrate on work. For her, domestic and professional responsibilities are a balancing act.
• Lisa of Books.Lists.Life. uses her own structure and organization instead of relying on procedures set up by someone else.
• Lamb at LambAround: Life With My Sexy Nerd focuses on the little things she loves about her projects.
• Carmen of Mom to the Screaming Masses created an office in her home to keep her focused on professional tasks.
• Kim from Recipes to Run On exercises, drinks lots of water, takes care of her skin, applies her favorite makeup and wears clothes that are flattering, which make her feel like she's operating at full capacity.
• Amy of Wade's World says: "I've developed close friendships at work with other moms. We can laugh, share and give advice on all the stages of parenting that we are going through while still maintaining a professional work environment. It helps to know that I don't have to turn off my Mommy button when I walk through the door of my office, and we keep each other sane through the good, bad and ugly of parenting!"
• Morrison of All Doors Considered says that while she works: "To stay & keep happy, I boot up my iMac, log onto iTunes, select radio and start listening to the oldies channel. I prefer music from the 50s, 60s and early 70s. Within seconds, I am singing, humming, tapping my toes and everything in the world looks so much brighter."
• Kim Yamaguchi of Mama Fasha says: "I listen to uplifting music. It keeps me going, makes me happy and keeps me focused on the task at hand."
• Stacy Cotrufo from All Stace, All the Time says: "While at work, I surround myself with things that make me smile: pictures of my husband and kids, comics, etc."