This is the best place to go on the internet if you want to start your day off on the right foot
- The first moments after you wake up can color the rest of your day.
- If you want to be a happier person, try to have a good laugh in the morning - and there's one place on the internet that's perfect for that.
Starting your day off right is more important than you think.
According to a study published in the Academy of Management Journal in 2011, people "who started out each day happy or calm usually stayed that way throughout the day ... [while] people who started the day in a terrible mood didn't really climb out of it, and felt even worse by the end of the day."
That's why, often times, you'll hear people say you shouldn't read your emails first thing in the morning, as it can be a distraction, or lower your mood.
Therefore, the best way to enhance your mood in the morning - and to give you the best chance of feeling good throughout the rest of your day - is to have a good laugh.
While there are plenty of places online that can make you laugh, like Facebook or Twitter, there's one place on the internet that is actually designed to make you laugh.
You might be familiar with Reddit, which calls itself "the front page of the internet." But Reddit is actually comprised of smaller, individual communities, called "subreddits." And one of the best subreddits on the site is called "contagious laughter."
A 2017 study published in the Journal of Neuroscience showed how "contagious social laughter was found to stimulate endorphin release in the thalamus," suggesting that laughing with others may create or reinforce feelings of safety and togetherness. Other studies support these findings, that contagious laughter stimulates the brain in positive ways.
And so, the "contagious laughter" subreddit is a great place to visit first thing in the morning. All of the videos posted there, and voted to the top of the page, are not only funny, but usually wholesome. Content there typically doesn't feature people laughing at the expense of others, but rather people laughing because they're sharing a moment with someone they love.
Here are a handful of examples from the "contagious laughter" subreddit.