High Five to a Better Life – the High-Five Challenge
The High-Five Challenge – a guide to raising your energy and living a joyful life.
What do you want in your life right now? Is it to be happy? To live a more fulfilled life? To love and be loved? Or perhaps to have fun?
Do you know what to do to achieve what you want? Are you willing to do whatever it takes?
In one way or another, we all want to be happy. Whether consciously or unconsciously, we try different strategies and use different tools with the hope that we will ultimately feel happier.
It often happens, however, that we look for happiness outside of us. We tend to condition our happiness rather than simply feel it. Somehow, we are taught to believe that losing weight, starting a relationship, finding a better job, etc., is what will bring joy to us. Even when we talk to each other, we tend to ask, “So, what makes you happy? What brings you joy?” Do you notice the pattern?
It is a fact that other people, stuff, and experiences can and do contribute to our overall well-being. The important point, however, is to realize that these are just tools. All other things are not the real source of our enjoyment. Happiness is what we choose to feel.
How to change our perception?
The first step in any change process is to decide to change. And since you are reading this article, you have already decided to take responsibility for your happiness.
Regardless of how much you will read on this topic and how much brilliant advice you will hear, unless you put all those into practice, nothing really will happen. That is why, in this simple guide, I present the High-Five Challenge – a simple tool for reclaiming your power to achieve happiness and live the way you love.
The High-Five Challenge
Let’s make the change process a fun game. If we love and enjoy whatever we do, we don’t feel overwhelmed or as if we are completing the chore list. In fact, the more fun we have, the sooner we will realize that we are happier.
The High-Five Challenge:
- Meditate 1 time per day
- Do breath work 2 times per day
- Smile to someone 3 times per day
- Observe the present moment 4 times per day
- Tell yourself in the mirror, I love you! 5 times per day
1. Meditate 1 time per day
In simple terms, to meditate means to quiet your mind for a certain time (whether that is 3-5 minutes, half an hour, 2 hours or longer). The moment we quiet our internal chatter, we open ourselves to the connection with our Spirit/Higher Self. That is when we can receive better, clear Divine guidance.
Often, our thoughts are so loud that we cannot hear anything beyond them. This is true especially when we face a problem in our life. The paradox is that this is the time when we need urgent guidance. But because we worry way too much, we cannot hear the voice of Divine wisdom.
Through meditation, we allow this wisdom to come through and shine its light on the path before us. Although we might not feel it at first, the connection is in the background. It surely manifests in the best possible for us way. For example, we might receive an expected phone call or email. Perhaps, we might overhear a comment that can give us hints about what to do next. Even miracles are possible when we put at least some effort to reach to our Higher Self.
How to meditate?
There are countless ways to meditate ranging from a quick 3-minute exercise to a few hours deep meditation session. If you haven’t meditated before, you might feel overwhelmed by the vast number of techniques and complex steps that some meditations require. Remember, however, that more or less, they all share the same end goal – your connection to your Source.
For the purpose of this fun challenge, you don’t need to do anything crazy or time-consuming. Or else, you might feel it as a chore rather than a game.
The best place to start is a simple 10-minute meditation, preferably in the morning. Simply, find a peaceful space in your home (isolated from the rest of the family, if possible). Sit comfortably and close your eyes. Notice the speed and intensity of your thoughts and let them all fly away. To help the process, take a few deep, slow breaths. Continue to breath and try your best to follow the flow of air in and out of your body. Thoughts will certainly continue to pass by. Rather than controlling them or listening to them, let them go and continue to follow your breath.
Am I meditating correctly?
If you haven’t tried this exercise before, it is normal to have doubts regarding whether you meditate correctly. Chances are that you are doing a great job. If you really need some validation, then watch out for the following signs of successful meditation: you feel more peaceful than before your meditation, you smile, your mind is quiet, you feel good and loved, your heartrate is slower, etc.
If you want more information about easy and effective meditation routines, I’d recommend you Sonia Choquette’s book, Your 3 Best Super Powers: Meditation, Imagination, and Intuition. It is perfect for beginners and people who do not have time to meditate. You can read the book before going to bed or listen to the audiobook while travelling to/from work or doing house chores.
2. Do Breath Work 2 Times per Day
This step could be a lifesaver if you have a busy, stressful lifestyle. Being torn between endless and urgent work tasks, family responsibilities, and house maintenance can be detrimental to your mental and physical health. Most likely, your anxiety is high, leaving you disconnected from your power. The reason for this is that when you are in fight-or-flight mode, you breathe very shallowly. That is, you do not provide enough oxygen to your brain. Consequently, without sufficient amount of oxygen, your brain cannot function properly in the long term.
One of the best and quickest ways to snap out of the negative experience of overwhelm and discomfort is to take a few deep breaths. By doing so, you will resume the supply of healthy doses of the critical gas (i.e., oxygen). Your brain will react immediately by slowing down your thoughts and heartrate. Just in a minute or two, you will start feeling better and more balanced.
An easy and quick breathing exercise
One of my favourite breathing exercises is the 4-count breathing technique. It is as simple as it sounds:
- Take a slow deep breath through your nose down to your tummy while counting to four (in your mind)
- Hold your breath for 4 counts
- Exhale slowly for 4 counts
- Hold for 4 counts, and repeat the process 5 to 10 times
Give it a try. Notice the difference in your body after completing this exercise.
An important point to highlight is that this technique is a good reactive tool. In other words, once you notice that you are not breathing properly, you can definitely use this exercise to regain your balance.
Try your best to complete at least 2 breathing sessions during the day. It doesn’t need to be long. If you complete the 4-count technique 10 times, it would take you 2.5 to 3 minutes.
3. Smile to someone 3 times per day
The third item in the High-Five Challenge is to smile at someone at least three times. I learned about the power of this technique from the amazing Mel Robbins. As she explains, when we smile, we “trick” our brain to think that we are happy. As a result, it starts producing more happiness hormones such as dopamine and serotonin. Ultimately, we start feeling even better and our energy level raises.
To further amplify the happiness effect, we can smile at other people as well. Most will detect our positive energy and will react by boosting their own vibration. The moment they smile back at us, we will feel even better. And, since feeling better and happier is the purpose of this challenge, I decided to include it.
If you go outside today, smile more. Smile wholeheartedly at the barista in the coffee shop who prepares your favourite cup of coffee. Or at the cashier in the grocery store who helps you complete your shopping on time. How about at your coworkers? Or a stranger at the bus stop? The opportunities to smile at someone at least three times today are endless.
If you are not planning to spend some time outside today, smile at your family members. How about your pet?
If you are alone at home today and there is no one to smile at, go to the mirror and smile at yourself. After all, you are a someone as well 😉
4. Observe the present moment 4 times per day
When the breathing exercise is mostly a reactive practice, observing the present moment is mostly a proactive activity. That is, by stopping in our tracks for a couple of minutes and slowing down our thoughts, we can prevent ourselves from getting overwhelmed and stressed out.
Another personal favourite from Sonia Choquette’s work is the mindfulness exercise (also described in her book, Your 3 Best Super Powers: Meditation, Imagination, and Intuition). It takes just a couple of minutes during which all you have to do is observe what is around you. When you look around, what do you see? Notice at least 5 different objects. Next, pay attention to what you hear. Are there other people nearby? Is wind ruffling the leaves? Do you smell anything in particular? Perhaps there are flowers next to you? Or a cup of freshly brewed coffee? How about sensing what you touch. Are you touching a plastic computer mouse? Or a wooden table? How does the fabric of your clothes feel? Is it cold or warm where you are?
By making a mental list of the information you perceive through these four senses, you detach yourself from your environment. It is a good way to stop and go back to your power and inner wisdom. That is, instead of allowing your environment and to-do list to control you and your well-being, you take control of your thinking and feeling. Although these might seem unrelated at first, by simply observing what surrounds you, you stop the autopilot behaviour and give youself a chance to take control.
5. Tell yourself in the mirror, I Love You! 5 times per day
If you are a fan of Louise Hay, you most likely already do this exercise regularly. You are a lovely person worth loving. Remind yourself of this over and over again. As Louise Hay said so many times, there is no such thing as too much when it comes to telling yourself, I love you!
Don’t wait for or rely on others to validate your worthiness. You are already a lovely person. So, at least five times a day, look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself how lovely and great you are. Tell yourself the magic words often and miracles will find their way to you.
The power of this exercise is in the fact that your brain perceives the same positive statement three times: once when you say it, a second time when you hear your voice and a third time when you see yourself saying it. That is, through this simple exercise, you train your mind faster to believe in the truth of this powerful statement.
The High-Five Challenge – Useful Tips
Are you ready to start the High-Five Challenge? If so, here are some useful tips:
- If all these action items seem too much for you, start by taking one step at a time. First, get into the habit of meditating for 5-10 minutes each day. Give yourself a week, and then add the second action item. Practice both for a week and then add the third one. Continue with the step-by-step approach for 5 weeks. Congratulations! You made it!
- If you keep a journal, reflect on your progress in this fun challenge. Do you notice any differences? How do you feel after completing a task? Did a miracle or two appear in your life? The more you reflect on the wonderful things that happen to you, the more motivated you will be to continue.
- Find an accountability body. If we are completing a challenge without anyone else knowing, it is easier to quit midway. To protect yourself from falling into this trap, find a friend who is willing to give it a try. Have daily or weekly checks and share your experience and progress. Keeping yourself accountable before your friends works like a magic. Give it a try!
Live often tends to be serious and stressful. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Take control and have some fun with this easy-peasy High-Five Challenge!
