Monthly Archives: May 2014

A VALUED LIFE, INSPIRATIONS, MASTERING THE DIFFICULT, PATHS TO HAPPINESS, RATIONAL THINKING, RENEWAL AND TRANSFORMATION, THE GREAT BALANCING ACT, THE SIMPLER LIFE, UNIFYING PRINCIPLES

THE HIGHER LIFE – 25 PRINCIPLES

Live Higher 11x14 jpgLife mastery is not difficult once we believe in its possibility and also desire to achieve it. Following are my top 25 principles for living a higher life and I hope you find them to be a helpful guide:

  1. Worry Less – Laugh More

  2. Sit Less – Move More

  3. Analyze Less – Feel More

  4. Text Less – Talk More

  5. Work Less – Volunteer More

  6. Complicate Less – Simplify More

  7. Rest Less – Sleep More

  8. Conceal Less – Discover More

  9. Discriminate Less – Understand More

  10. Complain Less – Appreciate More

  11. Consume Less – Give More

  12. Waste Less – Save More

  13. Think Less – Act More

  14. Abuse Less – Support More

  15. Eat Less – Taste More

  16. Critique Less – Love More

  17. Follow Less – Lead More

  18. Amuse Less – Learn More

  19. Blame Less – Value More

  20. Control Less – Flow More

  21. Doubt Less -Trust More

  22. Hesitate Less – Risk More

  23. Watch Less – Read More

  24. Resist Less – Accept More

  25. Plead Less – Pray More

A VALUED LIFE, INSPIRATIONS, PATHS TO HAPPINESS, RATIONAL THINKING

DISCOVERING YOUR PASSION

Expressions-7 copyWhat are you passionate about?  Have you found it?  If not, quit thinking about it.  In fact, don’t even try to understand it.  Discovering your passion will not be revealed by logical analysis; it is only found through your heart – that moment when you feel totally lost in your own joy. Your passion becomes evident when you are most in tune with yourself,  when your heart pings with excitement and your inner voice is telling you it is okay to feel this way.

If you haven’t experienced this lately, you’re probably not listening to who you really are.  You are blocking your emotions by responding to outside influences or voices telling you how you should feel.  If you are forsaking your own opportunity for joy, you are conforming to these external expectations and not those that you created for yourself. Over time, you can literally forget what really makes you happy and what you are most passionate about.

So if you can’t remember when you last connected with your passion, it’s time to do some serious soul searching.  Life is meant to be lived passionately, not with a boring sameness day after day.  You should seek every opportunity to make your heart sing with the excitement of life itself. You only need to reflect upon and then recreate those moments when you were euphoric about something you did, felt, experienced or were engaged in.

You may need to return to your childhood to recall those moments. Or you can possibly remember a more recent situation where you felt totally absorbed in your own joy –  a hobby, book, movie, song or even a stimulating conversation.  It may have been something difficult where you felt the challenge of achievement. Perhaps it was assisting someone else that needed your help. It could be something that required your physical energy, creative spirit or even your quiet reflection observing a sunset.

If you listen to your heart, you will know what has stirred your passions in the past. And it’s your right to bring them back into your life again . . . whenever you choose and as often as you desire.  This is what a real life is all about.  Allow yourself  the freedom to enjoy it to the fullest.

 

 

 

A VALUED LIFE, INSPIRATIONS, LIFE'S SECOND ACT, PATHS TO HAPPINESS, RATIONAL THINKING

WHAT FUTURE IS CALLING YOU?

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERATake a moment and survey your horizon. What is it telling you?  Is your future full of hope and promise or is it foreboding and worrisome?  Are you feeling optimistic about the rest of your life or does it look like a minefield of obstacles still facing you?

The fact is that your perception of the future will  most likely determine the outcome.  Having hope will project happiness . But if you approach it hopelessly you will find  happiness difficult to come by.  Dr. Richard P. Johnson refers to this as “the self-fulfilling prophecy principal.” If you have high expectations you will begin organizing and preparing yourself to make good things happen.  Conversely, if you dread what lies ahead you will not take any actions to change your future,  thus assuring the negative outcomes to follow.

Either set of self-beliefs will likely govern the results.  What you expect to happen probably will.  So spend some time thinking about the future and decide if it is calling you to be optimistic or pessimistic.  You have the freedom to choose between the two viewpoints.  You should choose wisely.

 

 

 

A VALUED LIFE, PATHS TO HAPPINESS

SEEK SATISFACTION BEFORE HAPPINESS

Life happiness is not the same as life satisfaction. While happiness is a desirable emotion it is temporal and fleeting, much like a light bulb that can be turned on and off as often as one chooses..

Life satisfaction, however, is a constant state of belief. Once the conditions for it are understood and accepted, life satisfaction (unlike happiness) is not dependent on one’s changing moods or circumstances. It would then follow that life satisfaction is a more worthy pursuit, that once achieved it would support more opportunities for life happiness.

So how does one bring this to the forefront of our set of self-beliefs? Life satisfaction is a conscious choice and emerges once we adopt the following attitudes and perceptions:

  • Accepting who we are rather than what others expect us to be.
  • Recognizing that life is good regardless of its difficulties and obstacles.
  • Acceptance of change as the natural order of our evolving life.
  • Maintaining faith in ourselves and the divine order of life.
  • Connecting with our authentic and genuine self.
  • Being aware of our unique and inherent purpose.
  • Being attentive and responsive to our core values.
  • Awakening to life’s grace and the beauty that surrounds us.
  • Manifesting our life meaning by sharing our talents and gifts with others.
  • Being confident that our life has great significance which we alone direct and control.
  • Living mindfully “in the now” rather than lamenting the past or worrying about the future.

Again, life happiness cannot exist without first having a broader feeling of life satisfaction.  By focusing on these conditions for life satisfaction while maintaining a positive outlook, we can then create infinite opportunities for life happiness. In other words, focus on life satisfaction first . . .  happiness will then follow.