Once in a while even the happiest and most well-adjusted person starts to feel down in the dumps. Sometimes the cause of the person’s depression is easily pinpointed. Other times he simply seems to have lost his zest for life and what used to bring him pleasure no longer does. It’s as if the person is sitting on the edge of the swimming pool watching all the other people do their thing, but for some reason he is unable to “get back into the water.” Things he has done in the past to make himself feel better no longer work.

When this happens, and it does to everyone from time to time, try this simple psychological technique. Write down at least 10 things each day that you enjoy about your life. Do this for six weeks.

Here’s a few of the items one man wrote.

• Wearing old baggy clothes on the weekend
• Driving my car on a recently paved highway
• Running in the park
• M&M’s
• Clean socks
• Watching my neighbor blow glass in his studio
• The sound of the tennis ball hitting the racket
• A good bottle of wine
• An Italian meal

Here are some items from a young mother:

• The smell of coffee brewing in the morning
• The leaves starting to change color
• The feel of a new book
• Bubbly water with lots of ice cubes
• Sitting on my back porch early in the morning smelling the air and listening to the sounds
• Snuggling with my children in bed
• Watching my children when they aren’t aware I’m watching them
• Fresh sheets on the bed
• Opening a new bar of soap

Now it’s your turn to make a list.