Ok friends this morning we are admittedly going to get more than just a little hokey. But every once in awhile you need something a little simplistic, childlike and sweet to kick off your day, here you go and as always have a happy day my friends from me to you:
Happiness, Success & Rewards
Recently we have talked about our goals and about focusing on the positive in our quest to be happier people. Today I’d like to talk really personally about something I’ve mentioned here before and that’s the fact that due to health reasons, and sure a bit of vanity, I’ve been trying to lose weight. Happily I can report today that I’ve been successful in achieving my first goal which was to lose 30 pounds. Today for the first time in over 15 years I stepped on a scale, looked down and saw three numbers that started with a 1 instead of a 2. It feels incredibly good. As we’ve said before it is important to set achievable goals and even some that are a stretch for us to make, for me, this one was a bit of a stretch. The more of a stretch the goal is, the more satisfying the accomplishment will be for you.
The problem that I now confront with this success is how to reward myself; I am a very firm believer in rewarding yourself when you succeed. Sure, were I perhaps a better person, a more self-actualized individual, maybe I could smile and say the achievement is enough of a reward. I’m not that guy yet, I’m trying my friends but I haven’t gotten there yet, so I need a reward. Of course for me, my typical reward falls in the realm of banh beo, pizza or especially cupcakes all of them raging with carbohydrates and calories and off the menu at this point except for my one cheat meal a week. So what am I to do for a reward as I make this change?
I’d love your suggestions my friends as I work on this problem and I’ll keep you posted as to what I end up doing, most importantly, have a happy day my friends.
Happiness via Zen Habits
I’ve referred to one of my favorite sites on happiness a number of times, Zen Habits. So today, a list of some of their most popular pieces on how to live a happier life.
1. Breathe http://zenhabits.net/breathe/
2. I really love this very short piece, a brief guide to life
3. Solitude
4. 72 ideas to simplify your life
Enjoy and have a happy day my friends!
So in our quest for happiness a quick check-in on how our country is doing as a whole, check it the link below:
So today I saw this post on Facebook by a friend of mine, (thanks Tick) and thought I would pass it along. The link below is a story elucidating the Dalai Lama’s instructions for life, enjoy and have a happy day!
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-3776/20-Instructions-for-Life-by-The-Dalai-Lama.html
Deng Ming-Dao, the new morning of the new year
Morning.
New day.
Joy of birth.
All we need is the morning. As long as there is sunrise, then there is the possibility that we can face all our misfortunes, celebrate all our blessings, and live all our endeavors as human beings. Spirituality is something that has become necessary in these troubled times. Yet it is inherently superfluous. We need it to remind ourselves, to bolster ourselves, to integrate ourselves, to fulfill ourselves. If we could simply acknowledge the mystery of night and the glory of morning, we would need neither civilization nor spirituality.
As its simplest, life begins with dawn. That is blessing enough. That is happiness enough. All else becomes fullness immeasurable. At dawn, kneel down and give thanks to this wonderful event. We may think mornings are so common that they are unworthy of veneration, but do you realize most places in the cosmos do not have mornings? This daily event is our supreme goodness.
Greet the dawn. That is your miracle to witness. That is the ultimate beauty. That is sacredness. That is your gift from heaven. That is your omen of prophesy. That is knowledge that life is not futile. That is enlightenment. That is your meaning in life. That is your directive. That is your comfort. That is solemnity of duty. That is inspiration for compassion. That is the light of the ultimate.
Happiness and counting your successes
Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want. ~Margaret Young
The end of the year is here and we all must suffer through the endless year-end lists of everything. You know the ones, the best of, the worst of, for every category from TV shows to movies to celebrity nightmares. But today I’m going to suggest that you do your own little end of the year list.
Every year has its ups and downs and I’m quite sure for all of you this year was no different. It’s often easier to focus on the things that went wrong over the year or the things you didn’t accomplish. This is not productive at all and will not make you a happier person. Now don’t get me wrong, you should take some time to reflect on the things that didn’t work and figure out what you could have done differently. However don’t obsess on it because this year is another opportunity to accomplish all that you want to do.
This year for me things went wrong, a good relationship ended for me, friends have drifted including someone who for over a decade has been incredibly important to me. Things at work that I would have liked to accomplish didn’t occur. I set a goal to lose 30 pounds by the end of the year, it looks like I will fall short by a couple of pounds. You could take all of that and really spin it into a downer of a year.
However it has been a very good year for me. You see the relationship ended but it was probably for the best in the long run, happily, we’re still friends. We still like each other and instead of looking at it as having lost a great relationship, I choose to count the fact that I’ve gained a good and new friend who I expect to have in my life for a very long time. Work is work, some things didn’t happen but we accomplished some amazing things and I’m about to do several talks at large conferences discussing our successes. Finally, I lost 24 pounds since July! Sure I wanted to lose 30, but the 24 pounds I lost have helped me look better and have been incredibly beneficial to my health.
The two paragraphs above talk about the same exact year just with a little different focus. Yet the second paragraph is longer and much more upbeat. And that’s what I want you to do, write that second paragraph for your last year and then use that paragraph as the starting point for the next year and as always, have a happy day my friends.
A quick note from his holiness the Dalai Lama on exercising your mind, remember, a fit mind is a happy mind.
Developing inner values is much like physical exercise. The more we train our abilities, the stronger they become. The difference is that, unlike the body, when it comes to training the mind, there is no limit to how far we can go. ~ Dalai Lama
Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions ~ Dalai Lama
Hello friends, today I want to address being purposeful in everything we do. Life is short; a fundamental fact that drives us in many ways and that makes our short time here poignant, painful, and precious. For that reason we all know we shouldn’t waste a day and I’ve been feeling that acutely in the last few months. I’ve taken to posting a note in my bathroom that says just that, “don’t waste a day.” Through my own introspective processes I’ve come to realize that it is this personal philosophy that drives people to believe that I’m a Type-A personality type. You know, the kind of person that must always be working, striving and cannot slow down or relax. I have argued against this characterization for a long time, but because I am busy and work hard and achieve some results people never believe me.
The secret I’ll let out here, just between us, and anyone else who happens to be on the web, is that I’m a complete and total lazy human. Were I to make the mistake of ever actually buying an Xbox or other type video game system my productivity would likely plummet to zero and I would cease to be a productive member of society. Hell, a quick visit to the Adult Swim page to play Sasquatch – Yeti Annihilation can quickly make two hours disappear.
So how does a lazy man get confused with Type-A personalities? I’m purposeful; I don’t want to waste this precious life I have, for however long it may last. I work hard, I do as much as I can but I am purposeful in my recreation as well. I like television and I watch a lot of it, but I multi-task a lot while watching, I’m doing it right now. I also vacation purposefully and frequently, I make a point of using my vacation time and recharging my batteries.
So my friends my advice to you today is to be purposeful, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment, you’ll get the most out of life, this will make you happier. And maybe some of my greatest achievements in a purpose filled life has been to purposefully find two good trees, hang one of my Brazilian hammocks between them and purposefully do absolutely nothing, have a happy day my friends. ~ Rev Kane
Until you are happy with who you are, you will never be happy with what you have.~Zig Ziglar
There is always a lot of media attention around the idea of happiness. Recently I’ve seen pieces on the habits of happy people and about how much money you to earn each year to be happy. Both of these pieces provide some good information and advice, the simple fact is there is a certain point in which you’re earning enough money to remove the financial stresses in life. That is the reason that households making over $75,000 seem happier than those households making less. It just makes sense, at that level of earning you can meet a reasonable mortgage, feed and clothe yourself well, take care of your family and even afford a nice vacation each year. These are all things that are bound to make you a bit happier.
The second piece I came across this week is an older piece making its way around the web again. However it is a piece that contains some very solid advice, a lot of which we have talked about before in this blog. The piece discusses 21 habits of happy people, a few samples include:
1. Appreciate Life
2. Learn Continuously
3. Laugh
4. Forgive
I pick these four because of the size of the impact each have on you; we must all remember to appreciate what we have, no matter how much, no matter how meager. It is important to forgive because carrying around resentment is the equivalent of holding a bag of poison inside of you, eventually it will lead to bad things for you and your health. Laugh every day, there is more than enough sadness to go around in this world so take the moments when it is good and revel in them. Finally, learn continuously, it is important that we stretch ourselves both mentally and physically. A characteristic of the old is that they are unyielding and brittle, the more we stretch our minds and our bodies, the more we stay pliable and young. Have a happy day my friends. ~ Rev Kane
Fear is Killing Your Happiness
Our Best Happiness Posts of 2015
The Ministry of Happiness 