Over the past couple weeks we’ve been talking about perspective and how using empowering language and looking at our choices in a positive way can make us happier. Have I mentioned my disdain for the word should?

I’ve been going through the list of 15 things we can do to increase our happiness, and as promised, here are the final 5:

THE LAST 5 THINGS WE CAN CHOOSE TO DO TO INCREASE OUR HAPPINESS (in this series anyway)

11. CHOOSE TO USE YOUR COURAGE (cf: Give Up on Your Fears) We can choose to be fearful or we can choose to be courageous. Often it depends on how we look at things, so thinking of reasons why it’s in our best interest to use our courage will usually make that a much easy choice to make.

12. MAKE A CHOICE AND FOLLOW THROUGH (cf: Give Up Your Excuses): We get one life and it can be as empty or as full as we like. It’s not so much that it matters what we chose to do, but rather whether or not we commit and follow through. It’s important to pursue the things in life that are important to us, and it’s okay if we change our minds along the way. The most important thing is that the general trend is in the forward motion.

13. WORK ON LIVING IN THE MOMENT AND FINDING JOY IN IT (cf: Give Up the Past): As hard as we try, we cannot change the past, and only have so much control over the future. We can, however, determine what we do with our present. It’s easy to get caught up in living in the past, or preoccupying ourselves with plans for the future – but the truth is, all we are actually guaranteed is our present. So use it. Enjoy it.

14. TAKE OPPORTUNITIES TO LOVE OTHERS IN SELFLESS WAYS (cf: Give up Attachment): This one is a bit weird because of the original author’s definition of attachment. I won’t go into all of that though. The important thing here is to work on taking opportunities to love people in pure, kind, accepting, and selfless ways. Even when (and perhaps, especially when) we REALLY don’t feel like it.

15. TRUST YOUR INNER VOICE (cf: Give up on Living Your Life to Others People’s Expectations): It can be important to take the thoughts, views, and opinions of others into account when making major decisions in life, especially the ones belonging to those we are closest with and know us best. That said, we sometimes forget about one very important voice in the mix: Our own. When it comes down to it, most often we are the ones who are left living with the choices and decisions we make, so it’s usually pretty important to hear from ourselves about what might be meaningful and important to us.

There they are. All 15.

Happier yet?