Raising happy children takes intentional effort these days. Perhaps it always has. Fortunately, a study from the University of Bristol suggests seven basic practices that can promote happiness…and so raise our children’s happiness. In this study, 51% of the participants maintained the practices that promoted happiness and reaped the benefits “during the following years.”  We can teach and practice these actions within our families. As we do, we will naturally extend them toward those outside the family as well. What are these practices? According to the senior author of the study, the practices include:

1. Engaging in acts of kindness. You can teach this in the family by sharing kindness with other family members. Share kindness as a family with those outside your family. Provide opportunities to talk among your family about kindnesses individuals engaged in or witnessed.
2. Intentionally make social connections. This may include talking to those you don’t know. For instance, greet the visitor at church. Befriend the new person at school. Acknowledge and greet the cashier as you check out of the store. Say “Hi” to your neighbors. Model this for your children. Coach them in approaching new people as well. Enjoy learning about the fascinating lives of the people you meet and increase social connections.
3. Accentuate the positive. Take time to reflect on the day in order to recall its positive aspects. Recall fun experiences and enjoyable interactions. Recalling successes, even small wins can boost the spirit and build happiness. Talking about the positive aspects of the day would make a wonderful family dinner conversation.
4. Savor your positive experiences. Recall your positive memories. With the ease of picture taking today you might even flip through your phone to review pictures that will help you remember the fun times you have had. Talk about those fun experiences and memories as a family. Don’t just talk about the generalities of the experience. Talk about the specifics; talk about the details. Don’t just savor the past. Savor the present and the future. Savor your family.
5. Practice gratitude. Intentionally look for opportunities to thank your family members for something every day. You can thank them for taking the time to eat together, for doing a chore, for conversing with you…the possibilities are infinite. Offer thanks every day.
6. Engage in physical activity. You don’t have to go crazy but spend at least 30 minutes a day in some form of physical exercise. Take a walk, go for a run, swim, bike ride. To make this even more exciting, do it with at least one other family member. When you do, you can build that relationship. You might even include a family member and a friend. Now you’re extending your social connections and your family member’s social connections (see bullet #2).
7. Explore mindfulness. This might include prayer or meditation. Prayer and mindfulness have been shown to reduce anxiety and increase happiness over the long run. Prayer, in particular, has been shown to enhance marriages…and when children witness their parents in a happy marriage, their happiness increases.

You can model and teach all of these practices in your family. You can engage in them as a family, coaching one another and encouraging one another to grow in each practice. When you do, you will increase your children’s happiness and your family’s happiness. And your children’s happiness and your family’s happiness will extend into your community. You might just find yourself living in a happier community of people.