I think this is one of the keys to an amazing life. How does one not grow old? Mr. Einstein gave us a clue in this quote. Stay curious. In this age of Google, learning things has never been easier. A question pops in your mind and in mere seconds you can be flooded with articles, videos and a multitude of other resources to explore.
This isn’t like giving yourself homework, it is learning about things that spark your curiosity. This website is a source of endless things for me to learn. Every time we get a new follower or viewer in a country I do not know enough about, I spend time reading and learning about the land and it’s culture.
Another thing is to explore and learn more about things you think you may already know all about. A few posts earlier, I mentioned our museum and how it is closing and moving to a new location. One of the things I’ve always enjoyed are these dioramas. They show different cultures. I learned they were made during the great depression by local artists. Sadly, many will not be featured in the new museum.
You want to stay young? Stay curious and keep learning!
You never know how much you are loved. Rarely do people convey how much you mean to them. Let us be the change makers in that. Tell people how much they mean to you and why. Then, watch them light up and your relationship with them grow closer. It is these actions that will allow us to change the world in a positive way!
Proof you can get inspiration from just about anywhere, I took this quote from professional wrestler John Cena. It would appear that Mr. Cena and I think alike when it comes to this aspect of human development.
Do you know people who seem to exist just to bring others down? With the advent of social media, these people seem ever more popular. I have experienced it more than once with my attempts to share this very blog. My mission has always been to leave the world a better place than I found it. To that end, my online material is free and available to anyone with a desire to better their life.
When doing my best to get the word out, I have heard that I’m out to steal money from people. I’m just another con artist looking to rob people. This is after declaring that everything I do is 100% free. It used to frustrate me as I’m doing my best to better the world, but now I understand there are people like John Cena described above.
Here is the secret – we can’t let their behavior influence ours. Why anyone would wish to live in a world of cynicism and negativity is beyond me. It really is its own punishment. Looking to tear others down has you constantly focused and looking for what is wrong in the world and others. Eventually, that is all you see.
Do you know what the cure for this darkness is? Quite simple really. Do the opposite. Be someone who lifts everyone up. Find the goodness is people and the world around you. Eventually, all you will see is that! Can you imagine what a great world that would be to live in?
Here is a list of the 4 feel good chemicals in the brain and how to get your fix of all of them. Each chemical has a list of 5 actions we can take to get those feel good vibes going. Do you think you could take one of the actions from each category to help yourself? Might not be a bad idea to print this out and have a check list of sorts.
Here is another great way to improve your life and increase the feel good vibes. Pick someone close to you and incorporate one action from each category for them! You will not only only increase their happiness, you will strengthen the bond between you and increase the joy in your friendship.
These lists are far from complete. Think of what actions you could add to each category. Increase the good feelings and vibes as often as you can!
Have you ever thought about what stands between you and your goals? When I ask people this question at seminars, a lot of different answers come up. Money, time, network are just a few. What many people either fail to realize, or fail to admit, is that it is not lack of resources that is stopping them. It is lack of resourcefulness.
If we were to look back at the evolution of even the largest companies, we would no doubt see humble beginnings. They worked with what they had until they learned our acquired more. My own success has mirrored this path. Starting this blog came with a great deal of ignorance to begin with. I knew nothing of how the blog world worked. Today we have been viewed in over 200 countries. Writing my first book? Same story. It seems with every book I publish, I learn something new.
How about you? Are your excuses standing between you and your goals? With a little more effort, could you overcome a seeming lack of resources? Denying this is only serving to hold you back.
Many people are confused when I tell them I listen to motivational content almost daily. Sometimes on my morning commute. Sometimes at the gym or on a walk. Why would someone who has spent the last 20+ years providing such content listen and learn about it? Firstly, because I am a lifelong learner. There is always something new around each corner. Only fools think they know everything.
Another reason is hinted at the quote above. So many of us check social media first thing in the morning. A lot of us listen to the news on the way to work. This can be poisoning our minds before the day even begins. Could you surround yourself with negativity and still have a positive life? I suppose you could, but it would be a lot less likely and a lot more difficult.
Putting good stuff into a body, brain and spirit will increase the likelihood that good stuff will come out! Want an even more compelling reason to surround yourself with positive things? It makes having a great life that much easier! Having a daily motivational calendar makes it far more likely you will come across something to inspire you than hoping your coworkers will quote Marcus Aurelius.
How do you get good stuff in? What actions do you take to surround yourself with positive influences? Subscribing to this blog is one way to introduce positivity into your life daily. What are some other actions you could take?
Falling in love with life will be the theme of my upcoming fourth book. Do you remember how it feels when you first fall in love with a person? You feel like you are floating on a cloud. Nothing can bother you. Imagine feeling the same way about life!
There are secrets to get this feeling back. It is much like love in a relationship. After a while, we begin to take things for granted. We begin to see the cracks and faults. Sometimes to the detriment of all the good and the magic. That is why children have a much more magical view of life than adults. Life is new. Everything is a miracle. My next book will help you capture that again as an adult.
In the meantime, I would love to hear things and situations that help you fall in love with life. Even if just for a moment.
As we get older, we appreciate how fleeting life is. It was difficult to understand this as a child. Isn’t a year always the same length of time? It is, but as the years go by, they seem to go past with a quicker pace. The loss of a childhood friend yesterday, before the age of 50, just proves life may not even be as long as we think it is.
That is why it is so important not to save the good things for the future. The joy, the love, just enjoy them now. You may not get another chance. Share love, share happiness. Live now, it’s later than you think.
Here is a thought I had inspired by bishop T.D. Jakes. I might have mentioned my sources are vast and varied. In a sermon he was giving, he said a line that struck me. I was reminded of this line the other day while pondering the meaning of life in the shower. That line was simply that people often do not open the gift because they do not like the wrapping.
To me, this means that often our greatest blessings grow from our greatest pains. In my own life, I know when I found myself at one of my lowest points, I met the woman who would, and continues to, change my life in ways I could never imagine. I do not think I could have learned, or more to the point appreciated, the gifts that she gave me without going through the pain I did. Many of my wounds in life were self-inflicted. To a point, I think we can all claim that. We look back and wish we would have spoke and acted different. In reflection we can see that sting of regret is often the catalyst to improved outlook and behavior.
There is a big difference between reading something in a self-improvement book and feeling the emotions of going through it. If we could look at our life from afar, I am sure none of us would choose painful experiences. However, those are what often lead us to the greatest blessings. Think about your health. Who thinks that they would like to put their body through months of soreness and stiffness? Nobody. Who would love to be in great shape with lots of flexibility and energy? Everyone.
I have heard this quote many times. It is so true in what we are discussing. Another place this shows up is in the struggle to break free from addiction. It is a hard and daily process. Everyone wants to be free of their addictions, but it can be too much for many to go through the long and difficult process. The gift is worth it, but the wrapping is not appealing.
You may not be fighting an addiction, or struggling to get in shape, but life has so many gifts that we overlook because the wrapping in which they are contained can appear as pain or struggle. One last important note. Many of us through away the gift after struggling throw the wrapping. Asking ourselves what is the gift in our pain can transform our life. It may be nothing other than being able to relate to, and help, others who have gone through the same pain. When you do so, you will discover what a great gift that is. It is one that could not be accomplished without the pain.
How true is this statement? In everyone’s life, there have been moments that seem so dark we want to give up. It can feel like our life is over, that there is little hope. If we hang in there, things can turn around to a surprising degree. It can start with a Crack of light in the darkness, or dramatic like a sunrise.
The cliche that it is always darkest before the dawn rings true for a reason. Maybe it is the dark that allows us to appreciate the light more? Perhaps it encourages us to be more attentive to what we should be grateful for? Regardless of the reasons, we can experience some of our greatest moments after our darkest days.
Next time you find yourself in the bottom looking up, think of the cliche about it being darkest before the dawn. Clichés become Clichés because there is some truth to them. I’ll leave you with this quote from one of my favorite poets. Think of yourself as that bird.
SECRET 2 AN AMAZING LIFE 