9 Ways Post

9 Ways To Be Happy And Make Something Out Of Your Life



Gordon B Hinckley

1. Be Grateful
To me, being grateful is taking the time to notice and reflect upon things that I am thankful about. Gratitude isn't something to recognize only after you've had a momentous moment in your life, it is something you should have even for simple thing such as a piece of cake. Being a grateful person not only makes you feel better about yourself, but it also gives you satisfaction & positivity. One thing I like to do when I wake up in the morning is to notice what I am grateful for each day, whether it be something new or old in my life. Another thing about gratitude is that we shouldn't keep it bottled up within ourselves all of the time. It is a very nice thing when others feel appreciated for the things they do for us when we express our gratitude. It only takes about a minute to really step back and reflect on things we are grateful on, so why not do it more often? I feel as if we as humans get so busy in our day to day life that it sometimes is hard to remember to really be grateful for many things. One thing that I would like to do this year is every time I experience a moment of gratitude, I want to write that thought down and place it in a jar. Then at the end of the year, I would like to open the gratitude jar and reflect on all the blessings I had that year & how many times I remember being grateful. There are so many things in life to be grateful for, and the one I feel is most important is the gift of being to be on this earth everyday. I am so grateful for this life that God has given me, and will continue to be until the day I pass. I am also grateful for other thing such as my family, friends, my education, colorguard etc. Being grateful is an extremely important attribute to have, and although I am not always grateful, there is always room for improvement.





2.Be Smart
Being intelligent is the key to success in life. Those people who are smart can achieve much more, with less effort, than those who only work hard. Working smarter, not harder is the motive for almost everything that you do in life. When I come to school, I come into class eager to learn and put my all in every assignment I receive, because I am excited that my knowledge will expand. School is one of the major sources we gain knowledge from, after all we do spend almost 8 hours a day, 5 times a week here. Most of the knowledge we have obtained and absorbed throughout our life is mainly because of what we're taught in school. It is up to us to study and work hard in school, so that that information is retained in our minds. This is ultimately what being smart is, having the knowledge and skills to be successful. I know for myself when I come to school, I like to live by a famous short saying that goes : "Brains over Beauty." I often times come to school and see the same people who are so focused on their appearance to school, that they hardly even pay attention to what is being taught to them. I don't really mind most of the time how I am dressed or how much makeup I wear to school because I am not trying to impress anyone. I am trying to learn as much as I can so that I can gain an education, graduate, go to college, and be successful. Being a CTR person 24/7 also plays a huge role in being smart, because when you CTR you can never go wrong.




3. Be Involved
Being a person who is involved is very important wherever you go/ whatever you decide to do in life. You should always be involved in things that are happening in your life and things that affect you. I am the type of student who LOVES to be involved in everything at school. By staying involved in school, I keep myself busy and I see it as a positive stressor in my life.  Aside from school, I also am a very involved person in my community. A community is a place in the world that allows you and your family to have a sense of belonging. Not only that, but a community also gives you the opportunity to build friendships & really shape where that community is headed. A person's involvement in the community does make a difference and strengthens the community. I am currently a member of Communities for a Better Environment, and have been for the past 3-4 years. What we do as an organization is fight for clean air,water, and soil for our community. We are a disadvantaged community of color, and for that reason major air polluters come and put toxic facilities here. Just yesterday, I attended a 7-10 expansion meeting in Commerce, to ensure that Metro's expansion of the 7-10 freeway has a zero emission corridor, so that our communities don't have to breathe in more pollution. Also in this 7-10 expansion project comes the displacement of 2 homeless shelters, one in Bell California, and one in Long Beach California. This is an inhumane thing to do considering we are in a housing crisis, and these people will have no place to go. I have a passion for attending meetings like these that impact the community, because I am not fighting for a better life quality for only myself, but my friends, family, and my community. I also recently started volunteering at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank more frequently, because I want to be involved and make a difference in the lives of those who do not the same access to food as I do. Being involved in as much as you can is such a wonderful trait to have, and I always feel enthusiastic to get involved in whatever I can. I believe that I can make a huge difference by being involved, and I know that throughout the course of my life I will always be involved in what's happening around me.












4.Be Clean
Being clean is very important because it shows that you can be a neat and organized person. Cleaning is an essential part of everyday life, and you really can't avoid it. You should be clean when everyone is watching, but also when no one is watching. If you are a clean person, it reflects on the way you carry yourself. It is very important to be clean in all aspects of your life, not just one or two. I believe the most critical part of being clean is personal hygiene. Implementing good personal hygiene practices has both health and social benefits. In health, you are less likely to catch sickness or diseases. In social, people are more likely going to want to interact with you because you are not dirty. It is also important to have clean minds, as well as clean thoughts. As soon as a dirty thought comes into your mind you need to replace it with a clean thought. For example, if you are on a website and all of a sudden an ad comes out to a dirty website, you need to immediately close that page. It is up to us to have a clean mind, and clean thoughts.



5. Be true
Being true to yourself means to act in accordance to who you are and what are the things you believe in. If you know and love yourself well, acting true to self will feel effortless and natural. A saying goes, "You can't love anyone else before you love yourself.", and it applies the same way to "You can't be true to anyone else until your true to yourself." You should never take action to pretend to be someone else for acceptance. A lot of times, us young people believe we should do things to please our peers, such as partying and drinking. We go against our common sense or advice of our parents, only to involve ourselves in trouble and not accomplish what we are set out to do. If you do things that don't feel genuine/ do not reflect the real you, you will end up unhappy and confused.
In order to be true to yourself, it takes massive courage. It requires you to be open-minded and sincere. However, this doesn't mean you are inconsiderate to others, it just means you will not let others define you or make decisions that you should be making. You should always be true to yourself and live your life with your highest aspirations and values.






6.Be Positive
You should always try to be positive in your life because it will make everything feel better. You have to focus on the fantastic things you have going for you right now, not the negative things. You wont only feel better but you'll have a happier lifestyle. If you start to change your attitude to a positive one, you will start to notice the difference immediately. Being positive can also help you be active, you will have more energy and motivation. If you carry positive throughout within your mind, they are very likely to have positive outcomes.A negative attitude may lead to decreased productivity, so if you change it to positive, you will get more done. One example of thus new way can be seen within myself. Whenever I am going through a problem or issue, I never let it bring me down completely. I have the power to resist negative thoughts if I replace them with positive thoughts. I've been told many times that I must never be sad since I always have a smile on my face. That's because I am the only one who can control my happiness and I like to be happy. I can find happiness because I always try my best to carry a positive attitude, because even if you fake it at first, it becomes such a habit that it comes out as natural after a period of time. You can also be a better friend if you are positive, after all no one likes that friend who never has anything nice to say. Being a positive person can have a great impact on those that surround you also, even if you don't realize it. Happiness is contagious, and you can lift people's moods just based on the attitude you carry. Also, I have realized that being positive has made me the confident person that I am today. No one can bring me down with negative thoughts if I immediately replace them with positive ones.




















7. Be Humble
No matter what you do, no matter how lucky you are, never boast about being better than others. Not being humble will bring down your character and make people not want to hang around with you. We should be grateful and appreicative of what we have/ dont have in this life. You need to be a CTR person 24/7 in order to be humble, in other words the first step. CTR 24/7 isn't just a motto, it is a lifestyle.  It is important to become a CTR person. If you become a CTR person, then the ethics of each choice will become clear. They will each weigh in, and you will be able to realize the outcome. If you can realize the outcome, then you can make the decision easier. If the right decision is made easier, then you are more likely to choose it again. If you choose to be a CTR person, then you will definitely choose it again. If you choose the right, then the rest will follow. If you choose the right, then you are showing good character and working hard. Being humble is one of the most important parts of Choosing the Right.I will apply this new way to myself by always appreciating what I have and not showing it off to others. No-one likes someone who boasts because they can make a person feel bad. This is why I pledge to be humble 24/7 and also be a CTR person.

8.Be Still
I agree with this way by Gordon B Hinckley. We all have very rushed and busy lives, which leads to us never having time for ourselves. To be still is to be calm and at peace with your mindset. For example, if you go to the river, there may be birds chirping and occasionally a fish might jump in and out of the water. There you can be at peace & meditate or ponder to yourself about life itself. It is important to be still whenever we have a chance too, because if we are still for too long life will move on without us. There is a quote in the Bible that stands out to me a lot and it goes : "Be still and know that I am God." This means that we need to be motionless/silent when experiencing God himself. When we are still and quiet, we put ourselves in his lives and peace to our souls. We are more receptive to the things of the Spirit, thereby enabling us to grow closer to the Lord. I will apply this new way to my life by taking timeouts at least once a day to reflect on who I am as a person.

Final Reflection: 9 Ways
Overall, I feel that by learning and writing about these 9 ways to be happy and make something out of your life, I have grown deeply as a person. Each day that I came into Mr. Hay more's class and discovered a new way, I started to apply them to my daily life. Now that the 9 Ways have come to an end, I feel happy and excited to continue to apply these to my life, not just now but also in the future. Over the past couple weeks that I have been applying these ways into my lifestyle, I can reflect and say that they have helped me to become a happier and better version of myself. Now that I have substantial knowledge of these 9 ways, I hope to share them with all of my family and friends, so that they too can be happy. I really enjoyed learning about this concept because it is not something that I am taught in my English or math class. I really want to thank Mr.Haymore for opening my eyes and being able to show me these 9 ways so that I can continue being a CTR person.