Whom do you admire?
Whether it’s a famous person or a family member, we are attracted to certain personalities.
Think of someone who inspires you. [Read more…]
Give More
It is virtually impossible to feel bad when giving, especially during this time of year.
Rob Brezsny stands at a freeway off-ramp stoplight holding out a dull-green bouquet of small bills
Find more ways to give (and it’s not always about the money).
Give some time to help out those less fortunate than yourself. Give more compliments. Put your empty change in a donation bin. Open a door for somebody. Carry grocery bags. Pay the toll for the car behind you in line. Donate usable clothes. Give your books to a thrift store. Take those cans or boxes of food that you’re never going to use to the food bank. Tip larger (better yet, tip when it’s not expected).
Do Good. Feel Great.
If you’re looking for a couple of good charities, two of my favorites are OneLessMeal.org (also known as the Double D Diner) and the Humboldt Area Foundation, where the Ruth Marcus Memorial Writing Scholarship is located.
Expect More
Research has shown that our ancient ancestors were pessimists.
When you think about that, it makes sense. In their day, they always had to assume that everything would go wrong so they could anticipate problems in advance. That’s how they survived.
People who didn’t think “worst case scenario” that did not survive as long.
Although we are no longer living in those times, their genetics have been passed down to us and therefore, we’re basically “hard wired” to be pessimistic. We still tend to default to believing that if something can go wrong, it will.
What would it feel like to believe that we might actually do better than we thought?
How empowering would that be? What would you do differently if you assumed that your success would be greater than you imagined – rather than worse?
Dream bigger every chance you get.
It can’t hurt – and the ride will be much more fun no matter how it turns out.
Join the Seven-day Positivity Challenge!
Every Monday for the last several years I’ve sent out the Monday Motivational Memo (“MMM)”. It’s designed to help you move forward with whatever is holding you back and always offers some small piece of advice.
For the first time in the several hundred MMMs that I’ve sent out, I’m changing the format.
I’m asking YOU to spread a very positive message.
Please join me in making this go viral. The details are below.
My friend, mentor, and Zumba instructor, Greg Parnell, inspired me with this idea. He posted on my Facebook page, three items for which he was grateful and then he challenged me to do the same for seven days.
I accepted this, and I thought
“With all the negativity in the world right now, wouldn’t it a great way to remind us of what’s going well?”
What am I asking you to do?
I Think Therefore I Become
Next to my bed is a nightstand.
I presume that is a common arrangement in many bedrooms. Upon the shelf of the nightstand are many books; this too I assume is widespread.
Like me, I take for granted that many people have three categories of books populating their nightstands:
Some wait to be read. While at a bookstore, the concept between its covers was so striking that I plunked down money, thinking, “I will read that someday.” Alas, “someday” has yet to make its appearance. Being optimistic, I’m sure it will (probably about the same time as when “I get my act together”).
The second classification is books started but still unfinished. Maybe I lost interest, the story was not as expected, or simply “life kicked in.” I could give them away but feel like I betrayed them, (does co-dependence apply to books?) so I pledge to finish reading them in the future. Until that fateful moment, they too shall gather dust.
Finally comes the definitive category: Books completed. Residing here include authors such as Robert B. Parker, Dean Koonz, and Roger McBride Allen. Most are novels because I like to “escape.” However, there is one self-help book I have read over and over again. Although I do not buy into everything she says, You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay is infused with 210 pages of brilliantly simple wisdom (usually the best kind).
Hay’s philosophy, outlined in the foreword, includes:
- We are each responsible for our experiences
- Resentment, criticism, and guilt are damaging, and
- It’s only a thought, which can be changed.