Doing this can make you far, far happier.

Every person has a different definition of happiness but we can all agree that being calm, centered and at peace is a good start to feeling ‘happy’. What if I tell you there’s a shortcut to becoming far happier than you are?

It is not a secret, and like all great truths, we choose to ignore what is right under our nose. Let’s say that you are overwhelmed by ‘busyness’ – the art of being busy while doing nothing that you actually enjoy while engaging yourself in a million minor activities which leads to… feeling low and unhappy. Take a close look at your activities – do you have to do all of them right now? Are they even worth it? Trim your list of tasks.

Are you saying yes to every social do? Even those you can afford to miss? Trim your social list. Trim, trim, trim. Simplify, simplify, simplify. That is not as simple as it sounds, though. To get there, you learn to say no. ‘No, I’m not into that anymore…’ ‘I’d love to but…’ or if you are bored with excuses, just say, ‘Thank you for thinking of me but I’m unable to make it.’

Then, add something to your life that is good for you – like walking more or a meaningful catchup with a good friend. Or learning that skill because you enjoy learning it, and not because someone told you to or because it is ‘what everyone else does.’

Learning to say more often opens up more time for doing what you actually enjoy. The more you enjoy something, the more centered you feel. This makes you feel calmer and at peace. And voila, you have made huge progress in feeling happier without even trying too much.

The shortest way to happiness is learning to say no. The next time you feel tempted to say yes to something, stop and ask yourself, ‘Do I really have to do this? And if so, do I have to spend my whole evening in this activity?’ Then limit your time doing that activity. And if you don’t, just smile and say ‘NO.’