One Thing You Can Do Differently That Will Bring More Joy Into Your Life

How to start when you know you need more happiness in your day, but it feels out-of-reach.

By Ronnie Ann Ryan — Written on Jan 01, 2023

Photo: MixTape / shutterstock.com

two women laughing in front of a grey wall

There are so many things to stress about in the world today, which might leave you wondering, “What can I do to feel more joy?”

That is a great question!

I’ve been working with intuition for over 30 years and the message I often get about something that’s been troubling me sounds so simple.

I’ve heard, “Feel more joy” as the solution. Unfortunately, my guides and angels don’t tell me how.

What I've learned since is that setting an intention is a great start. From there, I become more open to the big and small ways to feel joy every day.

This has been a consistent theme throughout 2022 that has come from several different sources. In the spring, I was meditating and asked, “How can I feel happier?” I was told to spend more time doing the things I enjoy. Okay, that makes sense.

Then in the summer, I was in the garden intuitively connecting with the deva of the honeysuckle vine. To my surprise, she told me I was missing out on opportunities to feel moments of joy during the day. Really?

In the fall I took a workshop about talking with your angels and during the guided journey, I got another message that I should find ways to feel more joy.

Clearly, this is something I need to pay attention to. Yet, I wasn’t given the specifics about how to make it happen.

Apparently, I was going to have to try things to figure this out for myself. That was a little frustrating, but I took on the challenge.

I spent time journaling about what makes me happy and what could bring more joy into my day. I asked if there was one thing I could do differently every morning that would work.

Several ideas popped into my head at the same time which was wonderful.

Four ways to feel more joy — which is a taller order than most expect!

1. Acknowledge the divine

One way to lighten up and feel more joy is to tune into divine energy. I close my eyes and imagine that I am connected to the vastness of the Universe and feel like a part of everything. Yes, that works.

2. Get outside

I can focus more on nature, whether I’m outdoors or looking out the window. This simple mindfulness exercise always lifts my spirit.

3. Be grateful

Gratitude practice raises my vibe quickly. When I invest time in feeling grateful for what is going well in my life, my heart expands, and I feel joy.

4. Dance to music

I play my favorite music, sing, and dance. Music is a powerful mood elevator and I love to dance, especially when no one is watching.

Am I resistant to joy?

All of these ideas work, but for some reason, I didn’t keep up with any of them.

That made me wonder, could I be resistant to feeling more joy? What is that about? That seems very strange because who would not want more joy?

Maybe it was true since I didn’t follow through with any of these simple ways to feel joyful daily. Could I be bored with these ideas or was I just lazy about bringing joy into my life?

Honestly, I started to worry about myself. Then the answer came to me in a flash.

What if I just set an intention to feel more joy?

That’s one thing I can do every single morning. It’s quick, easy, and simple. Just say to me, “Today, my intention is to feel joy easily.”

I could do that, right?

How to set an intention

If I set an intention to feel joy, then I’ll be positively inclined toward that experience. I’ll start to have an expectation that joy will come my way, which means I’ll have a greater awareness of seeking joy.

This alone is a giant step forward. Setting this intention daily, I can use any technique that comes to mind to feel joy.

Nothing that I must do over and over. I can make it up as I go along or use a trusted method to raise my vibe.