Every time you read the newspapers, watch the T.V. news or listen to the radio, you get bombarded with negativity. The newshounds will tell you that positive, happy, feel-good stories don't sell. Why is that? In part, it's because we, as normal humans, get some weird pleasure or reassurance from others misfortunes. It seems that we take comfort in knowing that someone else is worse off than we are. That's a bit of a sad way to live, don't you think? I try to do things a little differently. I try to remain positive about my life and the lives of those I care about. I don't look for the negative in things. I look for positive outcomes. It takes a concerted effort to do this, but it works, I'm a much happier person than I used to be, and I have a belief that everything will work out for the best.
How can you generate this in your life?
When you wake up in the morning, get yourself excited by the possibilities that a new day will bring. Smile, a lot.
I started doing this because I knew it would make others wonder what I had been up to, but it became so much of a habit that I found myself smiling a lot more which made me feel happier.
We smile when we are happy or amused by something, but did you know that it also works the other way?
Smiling can make you feel happy or amused by the situation.
I also try to find the humour in situations, it's often there, but we take ourselves so seriously that we miss it to feel embarrassed or stupid or clumsy. If you think others might laugh at you, beat them to it and laugh at yourself, even if there is no-one else around. My wife laughs at the dumb things I do, I tell her, she doesn't love me less for that.
Regards,
P.S. Sometimes we get so focussed on trying to make a living that we forget to make a life. I know that I have done this in the past. I missed a lot of my daughters growing up years. I was working long hours and every day to put money in the bank account. I didn't spend enough time with her or my wife and eventually suffered the consequences of that neglect.
Fortunately, I was able to resurrect my relationship with my daughter. However, I was never able to revive my relationship with my wife; that's why I had to get a second one. People can change, but they have to do it themselves. Neither you nor I can change someone else despite our best efforts. We can encourage change by our behaviour though.
Did you grab the procrastination flow chart yesterday? If you did, great, if you didn't, here's the link again. |
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Brent Milne 12 Torrens St Happy Valley South Australia |
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