How to Plan for Your Future Happiness

Step-by-Step Guide

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   Step 1: Evaluate your life.

   When you know what you value in life, in other words, what things make you happy, you can make decisions that allow you to have those things in your life.Look at your life up to this point and think about what has made you happy in the past and what makes you happy now.
   
   Start a journal or make a list of things that pop up in your life on a regular basis.
   
   Include people and places that you visit or interact with regularly.
   
   Also list material things and experiences that have significance.
   
   For example, you might write that you: spend time with your best friend weekly; attend art class; have Sunday brunch with your dad; buy new shoes monthly; paint at least an hour a day; etc.
   
   Think about the big things (like getting a promotion) and the small things (like seeing a rainbow) that you enjoy.
   
   Think about things you enjoyed as a child, as well as things you like now.
   
   For instance, you might write that some of your best memories are of your family traveling on vacations.
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   Step 2: Decide what’s important.

   Knowing what makes you happy will make it easier for you to do things that make you happy.Examine your list and look for patterns or common themes in what you have listed.
   
   Those are things that are important to you, your values.
   
   Knowing what your values are will help you know what to include in your plan for your future happiness.
   
   For example, if you have on your list that you attend art class and paint outside of class, then that would be a pattern.
   
   You might say you value creativity.
   
   Or, for example, spending time with family and friends a lot might suggest that you value relationships and connecting with people.
   
   You might see patterns that indicate you value financial independence, learning, or helping others.
   
   If it helps you keep track of your values, make another list of just the values or themes you find from your master list. , When you are planning for your future happiness it helps to know what your values are.
   
   Once you’ve figured that out, you can determine which values are most important to you.
   
   Prioritizing your values will help you organize your plan for your future happiness.
   
   You will know which areas are most important for you to work on.
   
   Try numbering each of your values in order of importance until each value has a number.
   
   If you need help prioritizing your values, you can ask yourself could you be happy without that value.
   
   Or, how happy could you be without that value? For example, if you could have everything else in the world, but still couldn’t be happy without your family and friends around, relationships might be your top value.
   
   When you are creating your plan, focus on those values that have the highest priority to you.
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   Step 3: Prioritize your values.

Detailed Guide

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