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October 2011  Hi there...If you’re one of the hundreds of daily new visitors to BeHappy101.com or a new subscriber to this BeHappy! newsletter, welcome! I’m Jimmy, and my mission is to improve your life by making it a bit happier - or, better yet, a lot happier - everyday. I am a doctor, “rejuvenating” corporate executive, entrepreneur, author, and speaker. My wife (Jill), our five-year-old daughter (Joie), and our 22-month old second daughter (Jae) live in Tampa Florida and Newport Beach California (we alternate locations regularly – so we travel a lot). Through this newsletter, my website, my books, E-Coaching, and other BeHappy! products, I am committed to improving the lives of as many people as possible. So, I would love to hear from you on how your life has changed by using the BeHappy! system, or how I can help improve your life more by making the system even better.
Please go to BeHappy101.com to provide your happiness tips, comments, suggestions, stories, or thoughts and I’ll respond to you personally – as appropriate - as soon as possible. Here’s to your happiness and to having the kind of life you want to have! BeHappy! my friends 
INTRODUCTION (for new subscribers) The purpose of this newsletter is to provide a regular and consistent supplement to the action-oriented process found in my website - www.behappy101.com - and in my first book, simply called BeHappy! It is intended to make a powerful contribution to the amount of joy and fulfillment in your daily life by providing regular tools, reminders, and strategies to:
Since my goal is to help make people happier, however, it is best to get the book to use along with the website to achieve maximum benefit from the plan (yes, that’s partly a sales pitch — but it’s true).
HAPPINESS FACTS
Follow Up from the Last Edition of The BeHappy! Newsletter The previous edition of this newsletter in August was perhaps the most difficult step in our year-long, 7-part program designed to provide a “simple formula” for increasing your happiness significantly. Even though it may have been difficult, I hope you completed it as described, because it is also an essential component to living your happiest possible life. Really, though, every piece of the “Happiness Formula” is important, so please, to get the most benefit out of this process, and be living your happiest possible life by this time next year, go back and read the February, May, and August editions of this newsletter if you haven’t read them already. It will make a big difference. You can read the introduction to this series (the February edition) by clicking here, the first step of the process (the May edition) by clicking here, and then the August edition by clicking here. The August edition, if you followed the actions, helped you create your own personal Definition of Happiness. And, by reading the August edition of the newsletter, you now know that everyone’s definition is different. You also know that most people don’t really know their Definition of Happiness. Most people think they know it, but once they go through the process of really considering it and creating a true “definition” for themselves, they find it may be quite different – and certainly more specific – than they thought. So, at this point in the process, you should know your own personal Definition of Happiness. If you followed the action plan in the last newsletter, it may have taken you the entire 60 days to get your true definition completed. With it done, though, I’ll bet you feel a profound sense of fulfillment – or even “happiness” – just by knowing that new personal definition. It should be very specific and can therefore be the basis for the development of your life’s very own “Happiness Plan”. With this definition, you can now take the next steps in the process. So now, on to the topic for this edition of The BeHappy! Newsletter... Are You As Happy As You Can Be? (Part 4) In this year-long (7-Part) series, which started in February and will go until next April, the objective is to help you be as happy as you can possibly be. And so, if the answer to the above question is “no”, then you’re on the right track here to change the answer to “yes” and now it’s time to take the next step in the process. The Next Part of "The Happiness Formula" Once again, the “Happiness Formula” is ... H = (G + DH + C + 3R) ÷ 6 ... where “H” stands for Happiness (described in the February edition of the newsletter), “G” stands for Gratitude (described in the May edition), “DH” represents your Definition of Happiness (described in the August edition) and now “C” refers to “Contribution”, which is the subject of this edition. Unlike “Gratitude” (the first component of "The Happiness Formula") – which applies equally to everyone in reducing or eliminating “unhappiness” from your life – the rest of the steps in the process generally have different effects on different people. This difference depends essentially on your personal Definition of Happiness, which you now hopefully know from the August edition of this newsletter. That’s another reason why it is so important to know that definition well. Contribution does apply to just about everyone, but usually to differing degrees. Some people actually have contribution as part of their Definition of Happiness, and if that’s the case for you, contribution will play a much bigger role in your ability to be as happy as possible. Now, if you were totally honest with yourself in developing your personal Definition of Happiness, and found that contribution is not part of that definition, you may be feeling a bit guilty about it right now. After all, shouldn’t contribution be part of everyone’s definition of happiness? The answer is no. And if it isn’t part of your definition, you shouldn’t feel bad about it. Everyone is different. Some people have money or wealth as part of their definition, for example. That’s not good or bad either. It just is what it is, and it doesn’t necessarily mean someone with money or wealth as part of their definition of happiness is greedy or self-centered. And, on the other hand, if you don’t have money or wealth as part of your definition (or if you do have contribution as part of your definition), that doesn’t necessarily make you a “better person”. Again, everyone is different. There are many people who have wealth as part of their Definition of Happiness, who don’t have contribution as part of their definition, and yet are still the most loving, generous, happy, nice, friendly, honest people you could ever know. Not having contribution as part of your Definition of Happiness simply means you don’t “need” to contribute to be happy. You still may contribute (perhaps even more than most people), but if it’s not part of your Definition of Happiness you just don’t need it for your own personal happiness and fulfillment. It’s just part of who you are. Hopefully you can see by this simple example why most people don’t really know what truly makes them happy and why it is so important to define happiness for yourself. Now, having said all that, contribution is part of the “Happiness Formula” because, regardless of whether or not it is part of your personal Definition of Happiness it does affect everyone’s happiness – at least to some degree. But, it is important to understand what contribution means here. It doesn’t mean solely “giving something” to others. Contribution is much broader than that in my view. Contribution, to me (and how it is intended to be used in the “Happiness Formula”), means acting in a way that adds value to anything (other people, society, humankind, animals, and even, sometimes, yourself). Helping an injured squirrel, for example, is considered contribution (in my book anyway) – and can make you feel great. Picking up trash from a nice mountain stream can be considered contribution, and can make you feel better about yourself. And yes, donating money to a charity or homeless shelter is also a form of contribution, and can certainly help you feel happier and more fulfilled. Any actions that add value – however small or large – can be considered contribution, and will – at least to some degree – have an effect on your overall happiness in life. It is important, however, to contribute regularly and consistently. As the first “Happiness Fact” at the beginning of this edition of the newsletter indicates, these types of contributions (such as small, random acts of kindness) tend to be more short-term sources of happiness. But, it’s even more complicated than that. Even though small contributions generally provide only short-term emotional benefit, by becoming a “habitual contributor”, (in other words, by being a generous, giving, contributing person – where contribution becomes a “habit”), you begin to develop a deeper, longer-term sense of happiness, well-being, and personal fulfillment. It’s much like when we talked about “G” (Gratitude”) – the first component of the “Happiness Formula” – in the May edition of the newsletter – where feeling grateful about something might make you happier for a short time, but becoming a “grateful person” (where you have a consistent and permanent “attitude of gratitude”) can eliminate unhappiness completely – and can even make you happier forever. It’s the same with contribution.
So, this is the “C” part of “The Happiness Formula”. I hope you understand how it affects happiness for everyone. Now it’s time to take action toward becoming a “habitual contributor”. So please read on and continue with the "Actions" described below to help you take this next step in our “year-long” happiness process which, if you really do it, will change your life forever. BeHappy! ACTIONS TO TAKE UNTIL THE NEXT ISSUE OF THIS NEWSLETTER Like everything in life, the old saying, “practice makes perfect” applies to happiness, too. By using the tools and concepts in BeHappy! - and applying the principles on my website (www.behappy101.com) and in this bi-monthly newsletter - you'll get the coaching and the “practice” you need to lead the happiest possible life. It takes daily action to get “perfect” at it, though. So, if you have read previous editions of The BeHappy! Newsletter you know that every issue provides some simple action-oriented exercises for the next two months (until the next edition of the newsletter) which relate to the main "subject" of this edition of the newsletter to help make happiness a habit. Just a few minutes of focus every day and you’ll be laying the foundation for the happiest possible life - both for yourself and for those you love. If you do these things, I can promise you’ll notice a big difference in the quality of your life. You will BeHappy! Actions for the next 60 days:
This part of the formula is really very easy. It's much easier than the other components of the formula. What it involves is basically just making a list of ways to contribute which work for you and then creating a "schedule" (so to speak) of regular - and preferably frequent - times to contribute. The magnitude and frequency of the contribution essentially depend on whether or not contribution is part of your Definition of Happiness (as described above). If it is, you should probably contribute more, and more often. And remember, "more" doesn't necessarily mean more money, or even more time. It's the quality of the contribution that counts. For example, small amounts of high quality time are always better than large amounts of low quality time. So, start making your "Contribution List" and your "Contribution Schedule" today. To help you develop your list, the box to the right contains a sampling of ways to contribute which comes from my book, BeHappy! Use it to help you think of ways to contribute. Then, once you have a contribution list that works for you, determine when you will perform these acts of kindness. Use your PDA alarm to remind you. Put sticky notes up on your mirror. Whatever works for you as a reminder to pick something from your list daily, weekly, monthly, and/or yearly to contribute. After about 30 days, you probably won't need the list, or the schedule, because it will start to become a habit. And, that's the goal here - to make contribution a habit ... and really, to make happiness a habit. We’ll look back on this 60-day action plan in the next edition of The BeHappy! Newsletter at the beginning of December - where we'll then take the next step toward making profound improvements in your happiness – and your life - by exploring the next component of "The Happiness Formula" ... the first of the “3R’s”, which is about relationships. Also, when that next edition of the newsletter comes out, we’ll be in the midst of the holiday season ... so we’ll have a whole section on “holiday happiness” as well. In the meantime, make sure to check out the BeHappy! Blog for weekly holiday tips starting just before U.S. Thanksgiving (around the third week of November). WHAT'S NEW AT BeHappy101.com: Every issue of this newsletter will keep you up to date on new stuff at BeHappy101.com so you can get maximum benefit from the BeHappy! system. You can access any of these quickly by just clicking on the links in the list below. Here are a few additions over the past two months:
And much, much more. So until the next edition of The BeHappy! Newsletter around the first week of December... Thanks for being a loyal subscriber and... BeHappy! my friends
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