Happiness is the only true measure of personal success. Making other people happy is the highest expression of success, but it’s almost impossible to make others happy if you’re not happy yourself. With that in mind, here are nine small changes that you can make to your daily routine that will immediately increase the amount of happiness in your life:
衡量一个人是否成功的真正标准只有这个人是否幸福。让别人感到快乐幸福是个人成功的最高形式。不过，如果你自己不快乐的话，是很难做到让别人快乐的。记住这一点，以下提出的9条建议，会让你的生活马上变得快乐起来。
1. Start each day with expectation.
对每天都有期望
If there’s any big truth about life, it’s that it usually lives up to (or down to) your expectations. Therefore, when you rise from bed, make your first thought: “something wonderful is going to happen today.” Guess what? You’re probably right.
如果生活真有所谓的真谛存在的话，那么就是对生活有点期望。当你早上起床的时候，第一件事就是去想：“今天会有好事发生。”猜猜看结果如何？很有可能你就能美梦成真。
2. Take time to plan and prioritize.
花时间计划，优先处理紧急事务
The most common source of stress is the perception that you’ve got too much work to do. Rather than obsess about it, pick one thing that, if you get it done today, will move you closer to your highest goal and purpose in life. Then do that first.
压力最通常的来源就是意识到自己有太多的事情要做。与其被堆积如山的事务缠身，不如从中挑选一件来做。挑选的标准就是，做完这件事，就会离你人生中的最高目标更进一步。挑选出了要做的事情之后，就把它放在首位去完成。
3. Give a gift to everyone you meet.
向每位遇到的人传递正能量
I’m not talking about a formal, wrapped-up present. Your gift can be your smile, a word of thanks or encouragement, a gesture of politeness, even a friendly nod. And never pass beggars without leaving them something. Peace of mind is worth the spare change.
我并不是要你去送一些包装精美的礼品。你的礼物可以是一个微笑，一句感谢或者鼓励的话，一个礼貌的动作，甚至只是善意的颔首。经过乞讨者时，留下些零钱吧。善良的心灵比零钱更值钱。
4. Deflect partisan conversations.
尽可能不谈及敏感话题
Arguments about politics and religion never have a “right” answer but they definitely get people all riled up over things they can’t control. When such topics surface, bow out by saying something like: “Thinking about that stuff makes my head hurt.”
有关政治和宗教的话题永远没有正确答案，但却会让人心浮气躁，难以掌控谈话的局面。如果出现了这样的话题，就可以用一句“想到这些事情我就头疼”，礼貌地退出讨论。
5. Assume people have good intentions.
假设人们动机善良
Since you can’t read minds, you don’t really know the “why” behind the “what” that people do. Imputing evil motives to other people’s weird behaviors adds extra misery to life, while assuming good intentions leaves you open to reconciliation.
你没有读心术，所以你不会明白人们行为背后的真正含义。不要为他人怪异的举动注入不良的动机，这只会让生活更加愁云惨淡而已。反而假设人们的动机善良，会让你有更多的机会去与对方和解。
6. Eat high quality food slowly.
慢慢享受高质量食物
Sometimes we can’t avoid scarfing something quick to keep us up and running. Even so, at least once a day try to eat something really delicious, like a small chunk of fine cheese or an imported chocolate. Focus on it; taste it; savor it.
有时候，我们不得不狼吞虎咽，急着开工。即使这样，也要让自己每天拥有一次真正享受美食的机会，比如一块醇正的奶酪或者进口的巧克力。关注食物本身，品味它，享受它。
7. Let go of your results.
不考虑不能改变的结果
The big enemy of happiness is worry, which comes from focusing on events that are outside your control. Once you’ve taken action, there’s usually nothing more you can do. Focus on the job at hand rather than some weird fantasy of what might happen.
幸福快乐的最大敌人就是担心，担心那些不可能改变的结果。一旦你采取了行动，对于结果，你就已经无能为力了。把精力关注在手头正要做的事情上，而不是去臆测可能发生的可怕结果。
8. Turn off “background” TV.
如果不用，关掉电视
Many households leave their TVs on as “background noise” while they’re doing other things. The entire point of broadcast TV is to make you dissatisfied with your life so that you’ll buy more stuff. Why subliminally program yourself to be a mindless consumer?
很多家庭都会在忙着其他事情的时候，把电视机开着当背景声音。电视节目的全部目的就是让你对生活不满，从而去购买更多的东西。为什么要让电视节目把你变成一个毫无主见的消费者呢？
9. End each day with gratitude.
睡前保持一颗感恩的心
Just before you go to bed, write down at least one wonderful thing that happened. It might be something as small as a making a child laugh or something as huge as a million dollar deal. Whatever it is, be grateful for that day because it will never come again.
在临睡前，写下至少一件今天发生的美好的事情。这件事情可以小到是让一个孩子笑了起来，也可以是大到做成了一笔百万美元的生意。无论是什么事情，都要心怀感恩，因为过去的这一天将永远不会回来。