So far, the latest series of the Happiness Challenge has 28 episodes featuring 9 amazing experts, and Klaudia has tested 36 happiness hacks! 

In this episode, on the basis of this wealth of information, Klaudia shares 10 practical ideas for action to boost your happiness. Listen and learn about:

1. Starting a day with shift therapy 
2. Using power-posing to feel more confident 
3. Creating your soundscape to rest, recover and unwind
4. Having a cold shower to kickstart your feel-good chemicals
5. Plannig a nature trip into a wild
6. Having a curiosity conversation to learn about a new skill or a topic
7. Introducing consistency into your sleep routine 
8. Reflecting on your spending habits and their impact on your happiness
9. Aiming to eat 30 plant-based foods a week
10. Trying something out of the ordinary to give your brain a workout

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What I found set me on the path to joy. And now I'm ready to share my journey with you. Each month I'm publishing three linked episodes where I'm speaking to a leading expert, putting their tips to the test and sharing my findings and feelings. From mindfulness to exercise and random acts of kindness, I'll be shining a light on the simple happiness habits that can bring more joy to our lives.

Hello, happiness seekers. My name is Klaudia, and you are listening to the happiness challenge, a show where I test drive the best happiness hacks science has on offer. So far in the latest series of the happiness challenge, we had 28 episodes, featuring nine amazing guests, really great experts within their field.

Let's begin.

Number one is about shifting your mood. So, this is based on the findings that any strong emotion causing physiological reaction in your body lasts approximately 90 seconds in their original intensity. That is why taking breath is so effective because it allows you to pause, pay attention to your experience and let the emotions pass.

And this creates a space between your emotions and the next action you're going to take. And my guest, Dr. Sean Sullivan, clinical psychologist in episode 66, explained that Shift Therapy takes you one step farther. Once you have mindfully created that pause, shifting encourages you to imagine emotions that you want to feel instead.

Maybe you rush out of bed. Maybe you snooze the alarm. Maybe you go back to sleep. Whatever it is, your first idea for action is to start your day with shift therapy. That means that in the first two minutes of waking up, you simply pause to visualize how you wish to feel that day. Energized, motivated, calm, joyful, whatever it is.

You choose, but you spend first two minutes of waking up with shift therapy.

And that feeling is subjective for us and one that can be fuelled with the right sources. So, the question to reflect on is: when do you want to feel more confident in one specific situations? Do you wish to feel more confident? And once you have identified that situation, idea for action here is to switch to power posing.

Number three in terms of idea for action is about relaxing and unwinding with sound healing. Supriya Nagarajan is a singer, composer, and a musician who in episode 73 encourages us to create soundscapes, moments during which we shut down other senses and let our brain concentrate on relaxing sounds.

Nature sounds, gong sounds, any specific instruments that the sounds of them you'll find really relaxing and unwinding. And once you've done that, create a playlist of your favourite healing sounds for your soundscapes so that you can listen to those when you need a moment of peace and quiet.

So, your reflective question here is what are the activities that make you feel joyful? And are they part of your weekly schedule to really boost your feel-good chemicals? But whatever on the list, the idea for action here for you is to expand your list by starting a day with a cold shower. I know it doesn't sound pleasant, especially if it's quite gloomy outside, but the research confirms that our body compensates for the experience of the cold water by upregulating the level of feel-good chemicals, including dopamine.

So, check that out.

Okay, let's crack on with number five, which was inspired by Ben Goldsmith, financier environmentalist, who in the episode 80, shares his grief journey after losing his daughter and very much shares how nature helped him to find strength, comfort, and solace. The benefits of spending more time in nature are endless when we look at the research from production of our immune cells, increasing in the forests to mental fatigue, being reduced by looking at nature, really endless number of benefits.

Something around us, but we're not truly paying attention to it. So, the idea for action is to plan a trip into a wild. Choose a new green space, which you haven't visited yet. Park, forest, beach, mountain, lake, pond, whatever it is, and visit it mindfully. That means when you're there, notice the colours, the sounds, the smells, be truly present and truly connect with nature.

So, number six, it's all about staying curious. My podcast guest, the founder of the Global Curiosity Institute, Stefaan van Hooydonk in episode 108, stressed that curiosity is actually not a skill, but rather our willingness to engage in new, unfamiliar, complex topics or activities. And Stefaan described how three different dimensions of curiosity, reflective, cognitive, and empathic, how they are actually linked to the increased level of happiness, that job engagement and productivity.

I love that episode because also as part of it, I was able to go and complete a scientific questionnaire to see how low or high I score on different dimensions of curiosity. if you are up for doing that, head to the Global Curiosity Institute website, you can do it for free, but in meantime, I really encourage you to reflect on what are you most curious about?

Okay. We are at number seven, which is all about improving our sleep. So, did you know that we spent a third of our life sleeping? I think that's absolutely amazing to know. And I think if we are doing that, then, well, let's make every hour of sleep count by optimizing our rest. So, Sophie Bostock is the founder of the Sleep Scientist, and she shares in episode 111 that the most powerful way to improve our sleep quality is to be consistent with our sleep routine.

So, your reflective question is, how consistent are you with your sleep? Do you follow the same routine on weekends and weekdays? And I really encourage you to track that. So have a bit of reflection and think what you think is the truth. But then as an idea for action, think about tracking.

When are you waking up and what time you're going to bed to see how much consistency do you have? And if you are up for diving deeper into your sleep quality, you could also listen to episode 113, where I introduced a SATED scale of assessing sleep quality.

And in episode 114, he stressed that, sadly, in today's digital age, social media often exaggerates our tendency to compare our lives and financial status with others. But Peter, of course, tells us to do opposite. He very much encourages us to learn to detach ourselves from those comparisons and really focus on our journey by starting to truly understand how money helps you create the world, the life and the freedom you want.

So, the idea for action here is to not only track your spending but track how much happiness certain spendings bring you to very much see that link between money and happiness when it comes to our spending habits. And if you are up for learning about manuscripts, which are unconscious beliefs, we have about money that drive our behaviour, you can listen to episode 116, really interesting concept of manuscripts and their impact on our behaviour.

So, if we have inflammation in our gut, we can have also low mood and anxiety. Then as Dana specifically says that good mental health comes from having lots of different families of bacteria within the gut. And that's why the diverse diet is crucial to our happiness. So, your question to reflect on is how diverse is your diet?

And just remember, that if you eat carrots, let's say, I don't know, every day or every second day, or you have cooked something that you're heating up for a few days, that will count as one entry because that specific vegetable or combination of plant foods will feed certain type of bacteria in your gut.

So, what we are aiming for is diverse, of your diet.

Okay. We here, we have finally arrived at number 10 in terms of actions that can boost your happiness. And that's all about neurobics. Neurobics are brain exercises designed to stimulate and challenge the brain, creating new neural connections and keeping our brain fit, healthy and happy.

Have a think how could you interrupt your routine with something different? It could be something simple as brushing your teeth with your non dominant hand. It's actually very difficult to fit something broader like having a go at a new recipe or learning a new skill. Generally, that neurobics can give your brain a workout your brain really deserves.

And they are very important for keeping our brain fit.

So here we are. 10 questions and 10 ideas for actions you can implement to boost your happiness. All very much introduced by an expert within the topic throughout the latest series of the Happiness Challenge. And of course, tested by me in my daily life with lots of different adventures.

Number one, start the date with shift therapy. Two, use power posing to feel more confident. Three, create your soundscape to rest, recover, and unwind. Four, have a cold shower to kick start your feel-good chemicals. Five, plan a nature trip into the wild.

Six, have a curiosity conversation to learn about a new skill or a topic. Seven, introduce consistency into your sleep routine. Eight, reflect on your spending habits and their impact on your happiness. Nine, aim to eat 30 plant-based foods a week and ten, try something out of ordinary to give your brain a workout. So, I really hope that you have found these questions and actions useful, helpful. I know that there is quite a lot of information in this episode that I've just chucked at you quite quickly so look out for my next newsletter where I will summarize all the information presented today.