5 Ways To Be Happier By Remembering What It's Like To Feel Wonder

As the holidays approach, we ask the children around us what they want for Christmas.

We listen and do our best to make many of their dreams come true. We know they believe and we want to keep their sense of magic alive. But how long has it been since you thought your wishes could come true? And if they could, what would be on your list?

We get so stuck in our routines and exhausted by our busy lives that we forget to ask ourselves what it is we are yearning for. Then, even when we do, we shoot ourselves down with all our ready reasons like practicality, expense, or time.

Here are 5 ways on how to know what we really want... not just for Christmas, but also in life:

1. Believe with a childlike fierceness.

What if, this Christmas, you allowed yourself to step back into the wonder that children feel when making their list. Children don’t see boundaries to their dreams because they believe Santa can bring them anything.

It is that childlike faith that many of us have lost. We’ve learned to look at our situation and accept it as truth. We believe that reality is set and cannot change.

I have found, over my years of manifesting wonderful things in my life, that I have to allow myself that childlike state of wonder. When I allow the limitations of my perceived reality to fade into the background and let my sense of wonder take over, then I am open to feeling my heart’s desire.

2. Let go of our censor.

One of the breakthroughs that allowed me to do this was becoming aware of the voice of my negative censor. And while I can’t stop hearing her, I’ve learned to listen to her without accepting her words as my truth. And this has allowed me to truly "believe" that my dreams are possible.

How many Christmas stories have you heard in which the children believe in Santa and life is magical? However, once they stop believing, Santa becomes relegated to the world of myths. And generally, the character feels sadness about having lost the magic.

We allow that inner censor to take over our adult life, lowering our expectation to what we feel we can achieve by ourselves.

3. Believe in limitless possibility.

Manifestation requires belief in a benevolent force outside of us. It requires us to believe that this force will support us in bringing our dreams to fruition.

The realists in us try to shut down the possibility of this benevolent force. Since we cannot scientifically prove that there is a God, there must not be one. I lived in this camp for a while.

But, as I started to work with the principles of Law of Attraction, I experienced that there was a higher power because I manifested things that I could not possibly bring into my life through my own skills.

4. Get comfortable with what you believe.

For a while, I was not comfortable with speaking about my own sense of wonder. Wouldn't I seem naive? However, I quietly continued to practice and saw my life turn more and more into what I was dreaming up. The more I saw situations materialize, the more comfortable I became with the idea of it.

To me this was all the evidence I needed: I received the results I was looking for and they were fabulous. These days, I wholeheartedly embrace my childlike faith to be able to manifest what I want, because my life is full all year with beautiful gifts from the Universe.

5. Make your wish list.

So today, I invite you to join me up on a cloud. Leave your reality down below. This is a beautiful, creative space, where everything is possible. And from here, ask yourself: what is it that I really want to experience in this life?

As the answers arrive, feel the joy they create in your entire body. Stay with that energy for a while and really soak it up.

In the coming days, just for a few moments a day, close your eyes and experience what it feels like to already have your wish. And for those moments, allow yourself to believe that a mysterious power will help you bring it forth.

And just maybe, this is the Christmas when your sense of wonder returns to you for good.

Selina Schuh is an educator, author, speaker, and owner of Empowered Living Strategies. She teaches women who are feeling frustrated and under-appreciated in their relationships step-by-step skills to create deeply connected relationships. Click here to visit her library of free resources and to support you further in overcoming your inner censor, download her FREE Guide to Creating Powerful Affirmations.