“I find cooking very grounding and meditative; it’s also a wonderful creative outlet and a beautiful way to spend time and share food with those you love. I cook for my family of four daily and for friends every couple of weeks. In winter I love cooking big pots of soups and stews and in summer, I love making healthy desserts with seasonal stone fruit. My favourite thing to cook is a big paella breakfast for family and friends outside on the chiminea. It’s full of sustainable seafood, herbs, spices, organic chicken and gluten-free grains and seeds. It’s the perfect meal to share.” - Carla Oates, organic beauty and health expert, founder of The Beauty Chef

"I start each day with a nourishing morning routine that sets me up in a peaceful and positive way for the day ahead. My body naturally wakes up as the sun rises. I then take probiotic powder, have a glass of water, make a cup of herbal tea and hop back into bed for some meditation. Some mornings I will simply close my eyes for 10 minutes and bring my attention to my breath, other days I listen to a guided meditation track. Afterwards, I pull out my journal and write about anything I’m thinking or feeling that morning and also set some intentions for what I want to focus on and feel throughout my day." - Connie Chapman, life coach, speaker and writer

“I make a point of letting myself have what I already have. Things like the smell in the air just before rain. A freshly cut lemon. A majestic view. The night sky, which I go outside and look at every night. I notice these things, take them in and allow myself the pleasure of them. Because even if it is right in front of you every day, if you don’t let yourself have it, it is never yours. It never becomes part of the ground of goodness on which you can live, and this forms so much of our foundation of joy. This practice of gratitude gives me an irreplaceable depth of energy and happiness.” - Dr Libby Weaver, nutritional biochemist, bestselling author and speaker

“My happiness secret is really simple: I like to hang out with friends who make me laugh. I think it’s good to surround yourself with people who keep things fun and playful. I make time to see friends at least once a week. We’re as busy as we make ourselves and I deliberately make space in my diary for things that fill me up, like spending time with friends. I have one friend in particular, Macca, who makes me laugh so hard that my sides hurt! Being around him reminds me of what it was like being a kid. When Macca and I hang out, we go surfing or out to Thai, there’s another mate who I go trekking with, and I also love going for walks or yoga dates with my girlfriends.” - Katie Kendall, co-founder and director of yoga at Flow Athletic

“My daily happiness ritual is stillness. I put aside 20 minutes in the morning and afternoon to meditate. I find a quiet chair, be it in my car, the local church, a boardroom, or my meditation room at home and I meditate. To meditate, I use a mantra that I repeat inside my head silently. This time of stillness helps me feel lighter, it clears my brain, increases my serotonin levels (happiness chemicals), helps me sleep better and boosts my energy. If there is a day where I miss this ritual, I notice a distinct difference in how I feel. Each day we are processing SO much information and every bit of data is extra work in the mind and body. My meditation sessions are like a holiday for my mind!” - Tom Cronin, meditation teacher, speaker, founder of The Stillness Project

“The biggest thing that allows me to find happiness is mastering my inner Mean Girl - that fear-based voice inside your head that’s constantly feeding your negative chatter. I have a three step process for it. Whenever I find myself in the battlefield with my Mean Girl, the first thing I do is become aware of what she’s saying to me. Maybe she’s saying ‘You’re not good enough’ or ‘Who do you think you are running your own business?’ I gently close the door on her, then I choose love instead. It’s about being soft with yourself and showing yourself unconditional love. Those three steps radically shift me out of fear and back into love, allowing me to feel happiness again.” - Melissa Ambrosini, motivational speaker and author of Mastering Your Mean Girl

Six Happiness Strategies You Can Learn From The Pros