Michael

Challenge everything you do. Expand your thinking. Refocus your efforts. Rededicate yourself to your future. – Patricia Fripp

Great advice! When we challenge everything we do, we keep our minds fresh and open. We stay objective which expands our perspective.

We become our best adviser and counselor. This new level of objectivity allows us to potentially take a new course of action that may be better suited to our situation. It allows us time to step back and give a few minutes of thought to what we are about to do or say.

Of course you don’t want to take this technique to the extreme where you become powerless to make decisions. Look at this process as a gentle way to be your best friend, questioning when needed but allowing you to make decisions on your own and without judgment.

Have a great day!

Michael

Happiness must be cultivated. It is like character. It is not a thing to be safely let alone for a moment, or it will run to weeds. – Elizabeth Stuart Phelps

Your pursuit of happiness must be something that you actively pursue all the time. That sounds like a lot of work, but really is about focusing on the small things one at a time. And like anything else, the more you practice it, the easier it becomes.

It’s about tweaking those singular, negative thoughts into ones that are slightly more positive.

It’s about stopping, listening and observing.

It’s about slowly modifying your belief system that you are in control of your own happiness. No external source will truly make you happy.

Take time to play with a dog, cat or child. I mean really let go, play and have fun.

It’s about learning to instill hope in the future.

It’s about taking a few minutes to do something fun for yourself just because you deserve it.

It’s about learning to accept all aspects of ourselves.

It’s learning to find the positive from negative things that happen.

Skim through the book, 14,000 Things to be Happy About, to help you find things to be happy about.

Learn to appreciate the small things in life.

Learn to use contrast in our lives to help us find what we truly desire. In other words, when we know what we don’t like, we automatically know what we do like. Start focusing on what you do like.

Practice the art of sincere enthusiasm.

Resolve to be happy. Make the choice that will start to change your life.

Learn to live more in the present because that’s where your true power lies.

There are a myriad amount of things we can do to help us be happier now. The ideas above are just a sample to help you get you started.

Be happier now. It’s your right. Life doesn’t have to be a struggle. It truly can be fun.

Michael

One must wager on the future. To save the life of a single child, no effort is superfluous. To make a tired old man smile is to perform an essential task. To defeat injustice and misfortune, if only for one instant, for a single victim, is to invent a new reason to hope. – Elie Wiesel

Affecting others by small positive acts can create a domino effect of change that can’t be measured. It’s very similar to the premise in the movie Pay it Forward. We help others in a positive way and because of your generous act they do something positive for someone else. There is no way of knowing where one positive action can go.

The actions can be simple; holding the door open for a stranger, smiling at someone, donating time or money for a charity, sending a gift to a loved one or friend for no reason, being there for someone during a crisis and etc.

It all starts with us. The first person we should be doing small, positive actions for is ourselves. As hope grows within us and our mood lifts, we can then share that with others. It’s impossible to truly help someone else if our own cup is empty. Fill your cup to the brim and then you’ll not only have plenty to share with others but a sincere desire also.

Have a great day!

Michael 

The person who upsets you the most is your best teacher, because they bring you face to face with who you are. – Lynn Andrews

I’m sure you’ve met or known someone that gets you angry, sets you off or generally irritates you on a regular basis. This should be an indication that there is something within you that you need to examine. When you have a reaction from someone else, it never is about the other person. It’s solely about you.

There is always a reason that you are reacting to someone’s antics. Many times, it’s because you act in a similar way and don’t like that aspect of yourself. Other times it could be about not being in control. Maybe the other person is bringing up an unconscious fear or one that you don’t acknowledge.

When you react to someone, take a step back and try to observe your reaction as if you are outside of yourself. What feelings are being evoked within? What fears are surfacing? Try to get to the bottom of what is going on. You may be surprised by what you find.

Once you make these feelings more conscious, you can deal with them in a much more open way and grow emotionally in the process. It takes courage to not blame others for our feelings and to take responsibility for our reactions. You will grow in leaps and bounds if you practice this on a regular basis. Self-reflection is a great way to overcome internal obstacles to positive change.

Have a great day!

Michael

I’m in the process of going through major changes with my career at the company I work for. So, I’ve thinking a lot about what I want to do and where I want to go. A number of ideas are percolating in my mind.

I met with someone today and for some reason the conversation quickly moved to career, other choices and future changes. I got a brilliant tip from this person that I will be diligently researching to see if it will work for me.

My point is that you just never know where information that can help you will come from. I am continually surprised and amazed. All it requires is that you be open, observant and that you keep your mood in a good or happier place. You can get answers from people you meet, friends you haven’t talked to in a long time, a book, an advertisement, a passing thought, a line in a movie and on and on. The possibilities are unlimited.

Try it for awhile. Practice being more open, more observant and working on feeling better as much as you can. You’ll be surprised at what will come your way.

Have a good day!

Michael

Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. – Berthold Auerbach

Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life. – Ludwig van Beethoven

A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. – Leopold Stokowski

Erica and I went out to enjoy some music tonight. My guitar teacher and his band, The Blackstone Jazz Project, were playing at a local venue in Providence, RI. They actually play a wide variety including mellow jazz, rock, little latin, tango and polka. Their original songs are really hard to categorize. It was quite enjoyable especially their second set which had a number of originals.

Music has an amazing ability to relax, inspire, increase our happiness and give us energy. Music can touch all levels of emotions. I really love listening to people who take traditional forms of music and mix them all together to come up with something new. It’s very refreshing and inspiring.

I can’t imagine my life without music, whether listening or playing a little bit myself. Music has always been an integral part of my life and always will.

I think I’ll go listen to some of my favorite songs right now.

Have a great day!

Michael

Happiness is not a matter of events‚ it depends upon the tides of the mind. – Alice Meynell

Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. – Abraham Lincoln

Today has been a fantastic day, but I can’t tell you why. Nothing happened that special or particular.

It’s just that every moment seemed to get better and better as the day wore on.

I think it’s because I choose to feel good today. It didn’t mean that everything was perfect. It just meant that nothing really bothered me for that long.

I’m ending the day on a really high note and plan on starting off exactly this way in the morning.

It’s all about choice. I choose to be happier right now. Simple as that.

What about you?

Michael

Stop. Listen. Observe. These three simple techniques either used singularly or together can be a great way to get more in touch with yourself and your world around you. I’ve used them successfully for years.

Observe. Observing is another way of increasing our information inflow. In the natural world, observing events can evoke powerful emotions or still our spirit. Think about the feelings you had when you stopped and observed a sunset. It’s almost inexplicable what happens when we watch natural phenomenon; sunsets, sunrises, waterfalls, campfires, clouds, animals in the wild, birds flying, the wind blowing tree leaves, ocean waves, lightening in a thunderstorm.

It connects us with the wider universe. We see our place in the great book called life. We understand how everything is connected. We feel humbled. Our spirits soar with the sheer beauty of what we are seeing. Observing nature energizes and gives us joy.

When we observe people, we begin to see the subtler meanings behind the words we are hearing. We start to understand the complexities of what we call ourselves. Remember that most communication is non-verbal and much comes from observation. The way someone moves when they talk. The way their posture shifts when speaking about difficult subjects. The connection we feel when we watch someone’s eyes as they speak from their hearts. They say that watching someone’s eyes is a gateway to their soul. There are definitely subtle, non-verbal things happening when we do this.

Observing ourselves can be challenging. It requires us to step out of our perpetual habit of ignorance. Observing ourselves is a key element in becoming something more. If we can observe ourselves in the same way we observe the world around us and others, we will gain a level of objectivity that will help us unlock our potential. Observing ourselves goes hand in hand with accepting who we are. As we accept who we are, the ability for us to be or go somewhere else dramatically increases.

Stop. Listen. Observe. Change your live in unlimited ways

Michael

Stop. Listen. Observe. These three simple techniques either used singularly or together can be a great way to get more in touch with yourself and your world around you. I’ve used them successfully for years.

Listen. When you practice the art and skill of listening you gain additional information well beyond any other technique. Listening requires that you stop thinking and completely focus on the moment in front of you. We can listen to ourselves. We can listen to others. We can listen to the world around us.

Listening to ourselves makes a connection to our true being. We tend to ignore messages from internal sources, but they can be vital for our growth and well-being. All of us possess the knowledge needed to insure that we are on the right path and living our lives as happy as possible. We have all the answers we need to help us in any situation. It only requires that we stop and listen. The more we listen the more we will hear. Remember that the important messages are from the “voice” that is subtle, quiet and less imposing. It’s that fist thought we hear after asking a question. It’s the intuition to make a change in direction.

Listening to others is one of the most important skills to master for mature interactions with people. When we actively listen to others, we’re not thinking about our response or calculating our next verbal move. We are hearing what the other person is saying; how their tone enhances their words. We are completely focused on understanding their thoughts or the point that they are trying to get across. The more you listen, the more you will connect with others on levels beyond your current understanding.

Listening to the world around us is a great way to get out of ourselves, to connect with the natural world and become more informed about what is happening around us. Most of us walk around in a fog and don’t hear what is going on in our vicinity. We miss the richness of our world. We don’t hear sounds that could soothe us. We miss important messages that could protect us.

Practice the skill and art of listening every chance you get and watch how your level of understanding dramatically increases

Michael

Stop. Listen. Observe. These three simple techniques either used singularly or together can be a great way to get more in touch with yourself and your world around you. I’ve used them successfully for years.

Stop. We live in a faced paced and hectic environment. Always rushing from one activity to the next and taking very little time to stop and notice what is around us. Stopping means to literally stop what you are doing and sit still for a few moments. Take a few deep breaths. Let yourself come down from the high created by frantic, nonstop activity.

Most of us do not take time for ourselves. We continually push forward, relentlessly going at break neck speeds until we are exhausted, sick or just simply numb. When we stop and allow ourselves to slow down we can regenerate our bodies, our emotional state, our minds and ultimately increase our spiritual connection.

The first time you use this technique could possibly cause distressing feelings. When we are used to constantly moving and suddenly we stop, inertia kicks in and tries to keep us moving. Our minds work on overtime. We feel like we are missing something. We feel like we should be doing something, anything. We feel like we are wasting time. We feel disoriented. We are momentarily confused until we get used to the new pace.

Stopping is so vital to our well-being. When we stop and simply relax into the moment we re-charge our batteries. We gain increased perspective and get a hint that there may be more to life than we previously guessed.

Make stopping a regular part of your day. You can stop for as many times as you need. In fact, the more times you stop the better. It only takes a few minutes at a time. You’ll be surprised at how easy this gets as you practice; just like anything else.

Michael