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Did you know that you can learn how to be happy$%: Read on to discover how.

You can actually train yourself to be happier. Happiness is a choice, you can choose to be happy and take steps to become happier regardless of what's happened or what people have done to you.

"The happiness of your life depends on the quality of your thoughts: therefore, guard accordingly, and take care that you entertain no notions unsuitable to virtue and reasonable nature." Marcus Aurelius

"Happiness is a conscious choice, not an automatic response." Mildred Barthel

"Joy has nothing to do with material things, or with a man's outward circumstances ... A man living in the lap of luxury can be wretched, and a man in the depths of poverty can overflow with joy." William Barclay

Happiness can be learned. The more you work on becoming happy, the happier you'll become.

• Try smiling at yourself in the mirror. Hold the smile for at least a minute. Even the act of smiling when you don't feel like it, will begin to change your mood and relax your body.
• Continue to smile through the day. Smile at people you meet, smile at people you see in the street ... smiling makes you feel good and produces good responses from the people you encounter.
• Choose to think happy thoughts rather than just accepting whatever comes into your mind. Don't dwell on negative thoughts, kick them out and gently encourage yourself instead.
• Remember happy things. Give yourself permission to smile or laugh out loud as you remember.
• Give yourself a break and indulge yourself. Do something that you've always wanted to do. Take time out to have fun.
• Do something to make someone else feel good, it will brighten your day too.
• Watch a laugh out loud movie. The benefits to your body and frame of mind will be well worth the time you spend watching the movie.
• Learn to be optimistic. Hope for the best. Expect things to turn out well. Worry is the enemy of happiness. In the words of the song, "Don't worry, be happy."
• Learn to like yourself and other people. Find things to like about them. Look for the best in them. Don't be so hard on yourself and other people.
• Change what you say to yourself about things. Emile Coue got his patients to say "Every day and in every way I am getting better and better." Many of them did!

That's because you can re-programme your subconscious. When you repeat the sentence to yourself through the day, your subconscious starts to believe it.

It's more effective if you engage your emotions in the process and believe that it's possible. Try smiling while you say it. There's lots of evidence to suggest that it really does work. Why not try it. It's easy to remember and the least it will do is put you in a better mood.

"Happiness is a journey, not a destination; happiness is to be found along the way not at the end of the road, for then the journey is over and it's too late. The time for happiness is today, not tomorrow." Quoted by Paul H Dunn

What one thing will you start doing today to make sure that your happiness grows$%: