there is something that only comes with age – and that is wisdom. we all know this fact. but do we really know what it means. we think it means that we know more – which we certainly do know more. but do we use this wisdom to our benefit or to help steer our lives. unconsciously we do use wisdom to steer our lives. we stop doing things that are not smart to do. we start doing things that are smart to do. but to use wisdom in a conscious way is truly revolutionary and is a secret key to a better life. i found this concept ring true when I realized that I was suddenly in a waiting period of my life. i realized that all that talk about patience being a virtue was now coming to life for me. i wanted the next phase of my life to begin, but nothing was happening. i then realized that waiting and being patient is a big part of life. i realized that jumping too soon at something is not the right way to go. i realized that being patient was all part of the process of moving to your next phase in life. you need to be patient and you need to be content with patience – waiting for precisely the right moment to leave the “patience stage” and enter the next challenging phase of your life. when you realize that patience actually helps you along in life and helps you determine the right time to jump –then you have an edge on life –and then you have true wisdom.
Category: Happiness
respect
respect is a funny thing, especially when you view it from your own perspective. it is easy to give respect to someone, but how do you gain respect for yourself. you go your entire life looking for respect, but the reality is you must earn a person’s respect – whether that person is your spouse, your child, your parent or your boss. in each one on one relationship, you must establish a sense of respect -more easily done with personal relationships. with personal relationships, you can follow your instinct on how to act and respect will follow. but in professional relationships, it is harder to judge when you have earned a person’s respect. oftentimes, it is not clear if your boss or your subordinate respects you. and sometimes you realize that you are not respected as much as you believed in the work environment. therefore, the only path one must take in the work environment is to do what you think is right and act the way you feel is the right way –and if respect comes from your actions and words, then so be it. on the other hand, if respect is not earned by your actions, then so be it as well. in other words, you cannot control whether a person respects you or not, so don’t dwell on the idea of “does this person respect me”. that is not for you to worry about – you can only control your own actions and results. you cannot control earning respect from others. you might do every action with the greatest of success –and still respect might not follow. don’t look for respect from others and only look for respect from yourself.
a boring day
yes, this is something that hits everyone’s mind –and does so quite often as well. we have boring days –it is a fact. we all have these days, even if you are in full swing at work or at home – the day can still be boring. we call it boring because it seems to be a day that includes things we have done over and over – nothing new arises – at least nothing we think significant arises. this causes us to think that the day is a waste – that this day doesn’t mean anything in our lives. we don’t like to think about the idea of wasting a day, since every day gone is one step closer to the end. however, if you think about that boring day a little more –and you do the thinking on that boring day, you can see that the day does have significance. it has it in this way. you need to stop (which is easy on a boring day) –and you need to think about where you are and what you have in life at that moment. when you do that, you realize that the boring day is actually a reflection of a state of happiness in your life. you are bored because you have everything you need. and i mean this on a emotional and human side of things –rather than a materialistic side. you have the right people in your life and you have the right life on the personal side. realize this concept and you will accept a boring day more easily –and it will allow you to think that you have not wasted a day. however, you still want to accomplish more things in life and you don’t want to think that you wasted a day in your journey to have accomplishments. but, here again, you must realize that life is a marathon and is not dictated by every action in every single day. the key is to be patient and realize that boring days also are part of the journey to succeed in life. bottomline: don’t let boring days leave a lasting negative impression in your life and think about what you have more on those boring days.
peace of mind
look…you go through this life thing –we all do. it is all we know and will ever know. we are constantly thinking….about everything. it is what we do. thinking is the most important thing in our lives. it takes up most of our time. it is what we do more than anything else. even when you sleep, your mind is keeping you entertained..good or bad. the mind decides every action you will take. it decides every move that you make. it decides everything. it creates your life. and it also looks at death. it knows death is coming and does not know what to do about it. it doesn’t want death because that is the end of its show. it likes being in the show. it likes running the show. it doesn’t want the show to end. if the show ends, the mind ends. so it avoids thinking about death as much as possible. this is why we don’t talk about death and what happens after we are gone. but deep back in the far reaches of the mind, it knows death is coming and really does want peace of mind when the time comes. it is all the mind can ask for, so it embraces this idea. how does it get peace of mind? it tidies up loose ends, it showers love on others, it says good-bye to the world in every way. but, it does not always consciously leave its mark on the world. it needs a vehicle or a push to do this. this void in saying good-bye and gaining that peace of mind needs to be filled. find a way to put down your life history so that you can have peace of mind. you were here and your mind was here –and your mind did everything for you –making you who you are. give your mind peace and leave your mark for posterity. write about your life.
run and think
every day has its challenges. and though these issues are not very serious most of the time –they do affect your mind and your mood of the moment. they can cause you to lash out at your loved ones. they can cause you to be depressed. they can cause you to think everything is hopeless. they can cause you to think you are getting nowhere. but what can often help is a run or a bike ride to get your mind straight. this won’t wash your troubles away –but it will help you to overcome the momentary lapse into depression. when you start the run, for example, you mind is searching for a topic to think about and oftentimes your thoughts of worry will surface first. this is very similar to waking up in the middle of the night –your thoughts go right to worry. the difference is the time of day. you have more control of your worries in the daytime. once you latch on to the thoughts at the start of the run –you are still in the area of worry. but as the run progresses, you shift away from the worry and start to think about the resolution to this worry. your mind strengthens and you gain back your usual confidence. you then see that this worry is not that bad –it is not life threatening or life changing. you can bounce back with the positive thoughts. you can see the light. so next time you are worried –go run and think.
forget the green grass
be grateful for what you have. stop wishing for what they have. look at what you have and see that what you have is great. you are lucky. yes, you have had some bad luck. yes, the path has not been all roses. yes, you did not strike it rich. yes, you are not the most popular person to everyone. yes, you have insecurities that drive you crazy. yes, you are not perfect. yes, you worry about what others think about you. yes, you want to please everyone. yes, you hate getting old and you hate seeing your kids getting old. but guess what? you have it pretty good. you are alive, you are still young enough where health issues are not a problem. you might be lucky enough to have a family. if you are, then this is the main reason to stop bitching and start thanking. be happy for the little things that you have and for the fleeting moments that you have with your family. cherish the nights with them, cherish the days with them. you have friends too –be happy for that. stop looking at the material world and saying “i want that”. you have everything you need already –be happy with that. tell your mind to stop. yes, you want more success and yes, you want more money –but it will all come if you are patient. stop thinking about how you want things to be and be happy with how things are. you can’t please everyone –so let them deal with that fact. just be happy –if you can.
motivation
Money should not motivate you. You must want to do something because you like doing this something. This is where true motivation comes from –from doing something you like and want to do. This is how you will achieve what you want to achieve –whether it is a small something or big something –the motivation must be real and connected to your willingness to want to do this thing. It cannot come from wanting to reap the benefits of doing this thing. These things are not real –they are wishes of material objects –these are not the true motivators –these are only what comes from achieving something through true motivation. Do not motivate yourself to get these material things –only motivate yourself to achieve a task –and only do this because you like or want to do this –and that you like the feeling of succeeding when doing this task. It is only then that you will achieve everything you desire, including material objects. Get it?
hanging out with yourself
this just came to me! (actually yesterday) — we all like to hang out with the person we know best –right? and that person is someone just like you, right? they have the same interests, they like the same food and drink, they like the same sports teams, they wear the same type of clothes, they have the same manners and mannerisms, right? but who is this person? the answer is simple! these folks are your kids! think about it — you inadvertently create a little you just by showing them everything they need to know to get on in the world –like this food is great, but that food is no good, so we won’t ever cook it in the house –so most likely the kids will never eat it as well. you then root for your college team and want your kids to go to your college as well –and all they know from the start is rah rah go state! then you have great manners and push that on the kids as well –so everyone has the same manners. this goes on and on –so eventually you are older and you hang out with your kids all the time because you are just alike, because you created it that way –it’s natural and if you think about it — it is awesome that you can create friends that will stick with you for life –and they are just like you!
hitting the weights
get in there and hit those bloody weights –i mean make it worth something –you are pissed about something –get in there and take it out on the weights or treadmill or whatever. the point is every day we come across shit that pisses us off –right? don’t BS me–nobody is really that damn nice –even if you show it on the outside, even if you are the quietest person –like a fricking mouse –you still get pissed off –we all do! so get in there and curse like nobody while you pump the weights –tell yourself that you are not going to take that shit, that you will push through and make it happen, that little BS things happen all the time and it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. the reality is we only get pissed off because of insecurities that surface during daily BS –and these insecurities push us to the negative of things happening and going on –then we are like WTF and we get pissed. so get past the insecurity BS and guess what? the only thing that matters is what you think because we are only here for a few years and people kick the bucket every day –so don’t waste time dwelling when the bucket is coming regardless. feel better? I do.
you are lucky
cut the BS –you are lucky. you are lucky to be alive and reading this. you are lucky to have a job. you are lucky to have a family. you are lucky to have your health. you are lucky to have friends. you are lucky to see the sky. you are lucky to smell the food. you are lucky to walk. you are lucky to talk. you are lucky to sleep. you are lucky to breathe. you are lucky to read. you are lucky to have memories. you are lucky to have today. So cut the self loathing crap and remember that you are lucky. comprende?