The Power of Creating a Joy List

Want to listen to this article instead? Tune in here. 

Last week in The Wisdom Circle, my private coaching group of extraordinary women, we explored joy.

So many of us confuse joy with happiness. Let me explain.

Happiness is a state of being.

Joy is an emotion created in any given moment through an action.

No quick fix or Instagram preacher can get us to happiness immediately.  

Happiness takes work, commitment and time.

Joy, on the other hand, can be created at any moment by checking our handy “Joy List” and taking action on one or more of the things that immediately make us feel good.

Listen, I’m not talking about the kind of pleasures that have negative consequences. I’m talking about those things that always make us feel good — if we allow them to.

Here (in no particular order) are a few items on my Joy List:

• Delicious healthy food
• Barefoot beach walks
• The sun on my skin
• Spending time with my children
• A steaming hot Epsom salt bath
• Holding a newborn in my arms
• Luxury hotel beds
• Mischief
• Instagram dog reels
• Time on trails 
• Eating foods I’ve bought at a Farmers Market
• My morning latte ceremony
• Swimming in Lake Tahoe
• Laughter at inappropriate times
• Flirting
• Holding hands
• Radical generosity
• The first few seconds after waking up when I realize that I’m still here!

What’s on your Joy List?