We all have days when we feel discouraged. You could have simply woken up on the wrong side of the bed, or perhaps you’ve experienced a setback in reaching a personal or professional goal. When you start to feel negatively about how life, it helps to know how to feel good again.

Do you know how to make yourself feel better? That might sound like a silly question, but not everyone has a set of specific, empowering ways to elevate their mood at a moment’s notice.

You probably have a few go-to activities, but it’s important for you to have a substantial list — one that doesn’t include things like food, alcohol, drugs or other addictive substances that can do you more harm than good. By mindlessly consuming food or other substances, you’re not addressing the problem head-on, but simply tricking your body to feel that it’s momentarily happy.

The key is to learning how to feel better is to create a huge list of constructive ways to give yourself a boost, so you don’t need to rely on these destructive habits that can prevent you from performing at the highest level. These items can be free and easily accessible, as they’re simply tasks that help you to elevate your spirit. When you plan for pleasure each and every day, you’ll set yourself up to live an extraordinarily happy existence.

In other words, what you’re doing is conditioning your nervous system, your body and your mental focus so that it searches constantly to see how everything in your life benefits you. If you continue to run a limiting emotional pattern that keeps you from achieving the highest vision of your life, it’s because you’re letting your old habits run you.

By creating a list of things that give you pleasure – things that benefit your mind and your body, you’ll create a whole new set of habits. These habits will become the blueprint for the life you really want, and will help you figure out how to feel good regularly. Sit down and write a list of things that you can do to change the way you feel. Start with the things you currently do, then add some new things that could positively change your state – mentally and physically. Don’t stop until you have at least 25 on your list. Hang on to this list and add new items periodically, so you’ll have hundreds of ways to change your state of mind and overall well-being, right at your fingertips.

Here are some suggestions to get you started:

• Singing along with your favorite song
• Watching a funny movie
• Having a cup of tea with a friend
• Taking a walk through the park
• Calling an old friend
• Spending an afternoon with your family
• Taking a warm bath
• Reading a newspaper on your front porch

The possibilities are endless.

Create your own personal list, and the next time you feel disassociated from pleasure and closer to pain, pull out this list and change your state of mind. The more you practice, the easier you’ll find it to move into the positive emotions that make life meaningful and enjoyable