Here’s the empowering truth: happiness isn’t about waiting for perfect conditions. It’s a skill you can develop starting today. We are not talking about grand, unsustainable life changes or New Year’s resolutions. True happiness isn’t contingent on external milestones – completing that project, improving your children’s behaviour, earning recognition at work, or landing that crucial client signature.

The key is taking control over the things you can control and accept what isn’t. Actually, it’s not as difficult as it seems if you break it down. You can decide how you wake up in the morning. Are you taking time to stretch in bed and feel at peace in the moment before getting up to begin your daily chores? Are you giving yourself space by not checking the messages and emails on your mobile in the first 30 minutes of your morning?

You can decide what you eat and how you treat your body. You can choose to give it energy and a clear mind to help you master your day in top form. You can choose to use your break to go outside for a little walk and re-connect with your family over a sport activity on the weekend.

Your thoughts shape your reality. Each day presents a choice: approach tasks with optimism and purpose, or succumb to criticism and complaints. The perspective you choose colours everything you do and how you feel.

Similarly, in every interaction with colleagues and clients, you can choose understanding over judgment. Consider their perspectives, respect differing viewpoints, and remember that everyone shares the fundamental desire to succeed and find joy in their work.

While we can’t always control our circumstances, we maintain absolute power over our response to them. Life is built not just on major decisions, but on the small choices we make every single day.

The question remains: Who will you choose to be today?