What makes me laugh?

Compelling questions help to focus us to think more deeply and opens the door to self-examination.

I just spent the weekend with some great kids. And besides needing a nap, I realized that kids laugh… a lot! Don't you just love it when you hear kids laugh? I couldn’t help but laugh too! Laughter has got to be one of the most contagious of all human sounds. As it turns out, studies show that kids laugh nearly 400 times each day. Compare that to the average adult who laughs about 7 times each day. 

In fact, laughter has been shown to have many beneficial effects on the body, mind, and spirit.

Laughter effects on your body by releasing endorphins. Laughing stimulates muscles, nerves, organs and tissues. Studies show these endorphins give relief to chronic pain, help to relieve stress and promote functioning of the immune system. Laughter literally helps heal your body.

Laughing is also good for your mind. Happy thoughts lead to a more positive outlook on life. When you're hanging out with friends and having good conversation that produces smiles and laughter, your mind's producing happy thoughts.

Laughing causes your inner being to be emotionally and physically strengthened. When you laugh or even smile, your inner being is stimulated in an affirmative way, producing a more positive outlook on life. This helps your body produce more self-healing endorphins, which actually helps your body remain healthy and running optimally!

This got me thinking. I've been thinking - if it's so important, how can we all make sure we have more of it in our lives?

Now, I understand that (as an adult) laughing 400 times may cause folks around to think that you may be having a mental breakdown. But we can surely do better than 7.2 times in a day. Right? I invite you to intentionally add more laughter in to your day.

Here are some tips on how to make sure there's more humor in your life. And, if you will, please report back and tell me what worked best for you. Oh, and if you've got any good jokes, I'd love to hear them...

Try these 3 simple steps to add more laughter into your life.

Smile more: Train yourself to smile more and more, turn that frown upside down. Why not make a point of smiling at strangers on your journey to work every morning?

Surround yourself with people who make you laugh: Children are a real joy to have around, especially when they break out into infectious giggles. Why not spend more time with the people who bring fun and laughter into your world and leave the miserable people alone for a while?

Watch a funny movie, TV show or video clip of your favorite comedian: Or if you’ve got young children why not re-watch some old cartoon classics like ‘The Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote’ and roll around laughing in your pjs, I bet the kids would love it too?

So, go on make a date with yourself and put more smiles and laughter into your life.