“Morning Serenity” by 2010 Army Digital Photography Contest used under CC BY /Modified from original
Writing makes you happy – thinking things through, talking about your dilemmas, or trying to repress your unhappy thoughts won’t work.
It’s scientifically proven that you must write, and varied experts weigh in on achieving happiness through writing.
Read on to see what you’ve been missing out on, if you’re not writing. If you are writing, then see why you must continue. Your happy life depends upon it.
Take time to reflect
When you think through the things that occur and “write out of that experience,” you will realize greater clarity and fulfillment.
Not only that, but you will also slay the deadly writer’s block. Russell Moore explains that by giving ourselves time to reflect we will fill the void within.
This tidy little bit of advice includes what is called savoring the moment. By stopping, savoring, and then writing these tidbits of reflections, your happiness increases.
So carry a small notebook with you. Jot down those thoughts; capture those moments in words. You’ll feel better.
Learn something you like
Allow writing to be an opportunity to discover something you enjoy rather than a mere exercise. While this should seem obvious, too many people miss this straightforward notion and instead approach writing like it’s the march to the guillotine.
As Albert Einstein said in a letter to his son, “That is the way to learn the most, that when you are doing something with such enjoyment that you don’t notice that the time passes.”
Learn about yourself
“To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom,” wrote Socrates. When you write to increase your understanding of who you are, you release your inner story.
It also can be a form of self-medication.
As Maya Angelou demonstrated with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, revealing personal experiences can be immensely liberating, offering relief to others in the process.
Help others
Writing can be a way to help others. “The idea is to write it so that people hear it and it slides through the brain and goes straight to the heart,” Maya Angelou is quoted as saying.
When you create an emotional connection between your writing and your readers, you make a lasting impression. Maybe you can affect people, influence and reshape their thinking, and make a difference.
This makes for a very happy you.
Apply some therapy
Studies show that sharing our thoughts and concerns by writing them down versus discussing them with another person or merely thinking them over is more effective in easing pain.
In 59 Seconds, Richard Wiseman explains three ways to do this. One method is to journal a diary where you describe future events you wish to see occur. This is called expressive writing.
A gratitude diary is another happiness-inducing activity, boosting your positive outlook through documenting the things that you’re grateful for.
You can also use affectionate writing, or writing about how much someone means to you. All three of these writing methods will make you happy.
Neurobiologists suspect that therapeutic writing such as blogging “triggers dopamine release, similar to stimulants like music, running and looking at art.”
What are you waiting for? Join the WordPress blogging stratosphere and get happy.
Getting happy is the whole reason for writing
Some people get desperate. Their need to write is so great that certain apps are made to encourage scare the dickens out of them, like Write or Die 2. I don’t see how this type of writing makes you happy.
Writing won’t have any effect on your dopamine levels if it scares you. Perhaps Stephen King said it best in On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft.
“Writing isn’t about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it’s about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well. It’s about getting up, getting well, and getting over. Getting happy, okay?”