Maintaining your joy of living means being ready to explore and play with the opportunities of learning what life offers. A person whose life is balanced is best placed to leap aboard as opportunities arise.

Balanced happy lives usually feature a range of activities which are consistent with positive comfort, control and creativity happiness goals.

RELAXATION AND PEACE
In our pressure-cooker society you can feel stressed whatever your lifestyle. It is probable that you need to undertake steps to be more peaceful, calm and comfortable, if you aren’t already doing that.

EXCITEMENT
Excitement is an essential part of a balanced happy life. Being too laid-back can work against you. A small amount of stress promotes action and improves performance – performances with which you can be pleased, gratified and proud.

EXERCISE AND DIET
You will probably be well aware of the general requirements for a healthy life. They usually include modest exercise three times a week for half an hour or more and a diet that includes the major food groups in recommended proportions. You probably know what to do, or where to go to get the right advice.

APPRECIATION AND PARTICIPATION
Enjoying the creations of others is usually a pleasure, as is participation in the arts. On some occasions your enjoyment will be on a spiritual level, as well as the creative and instructive, especially when the piece of art, theater, film or pop song delivers a useful message on how to live.

MORAL, SPIRITUAL OR RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES
To live in harmony with yourself, others and the world, requires you to be true to your values and to interact with others and with the larger environment in ways consistent with their respective needs. To do otherwise is to foster discontent and unhappiness.

One way of helping you to do this is to spend ten minutes each day reading an uplifting text. This could range from the bible to biographies of inspiring people, from books of sayings and quotes to stories of heroism, honesty, honor and love. Even the comic strips in daily newspapers may offer us human insight and moral understanding. Ten minutes of prayer, contemplation, or just observing nature may similarly be helpful. The important thing is to do it every day if you possibly can.

PRODUCTIVITY
Whatever your occupation, if you see what you are doing as useful to others or yourself, you are on the right road to happiness.

RELATIONSHIPS
Even though solitude is a legitimate and often a positive choice, for many people having a good relationship with a partner is important. What you say and do and what others do (though you cannot control them) matters.

Author's Bio: 

Samantha Johnson is the marketing manager of BusinessSummaries.com and BestSummaries.com. For more information, please visit http://www.bizsum.com.