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Daily Gratitude

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Daily Gratitude: I love this quote. You could replace it with something mundane like “I’ll be happy when…..”, or “I’ll be happy if….’

So many times we think it will make all the difference in the world if just this or that changed (oh and changed to how we want it to be. Ha ha. Like we’re in charge). Then and only then will we be happy.

But being happy is something that isn’t dependent on outside variables (the new landscapes). It’s dependent on our inner thoughts and beliefs (the eyes). When we decide we want to be happy, we can be. That’s not something that’s dependent on external factors. We may have grown up thinking that happiness is dependent on that but it is just a way of thinking.

Wouldn’t you prefer to develop a happiness button or switch where all you had to do was push it or flip it and you’d feel happy ? You can do that. Ask yourself why aren’t you feeling happy right now?

As I am writing this I’ve had vertigo and a headache and fatigue for 36 hours causing me to stay in bed and sleep almost the entire time. Do I feel great? No. Am I happy? Yes. Because I know that this, too, shall pass. And I know that I have so much beauty and wonder in my life. And I don’t want to miss any of it. Why populate my brain circuits with negativity when I can simply flip the switch so the positivity flows along those very same circuits.

It takes some practice if you’re not used to doing it but it’s well worth it.

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Daily Hotline Message

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Message 336

More from “The Obstacle is the Way” by Ryan Holliday

In this section Ryan was pointing to the reasons some people and businesses were successful during great crises while others folded over. The primary principle is something we can all put into practice in our daily life.

Because the founders were too busy existing in the present— actually dealing with the situation at hand, They didn’t know whether it would get better or worse, they just knew what was.

In most ordinary people’s lives, we aren’t content to deal with things as they happen. We have to dive endlessly into what everything “means, whether something is “fair” or not, what’s “behind” this or that, and what everyone else is doing.

Then we wonder why we don’t have the energy to actually deal with our problems. Or we get ourselves so worked up and intimidated because of the overthinking.

What should we do?

Focus on the moment, not the monsters that may or may not be up ahead.

He says “Those people with an entrepreneurial spirit are blessed to have no time and no ability to think about the ways things should be, or how they’d prefer them to be.”

we’re always trying to figure out what things mean—why things are the way they are. As though the why matters.

Emerson put it best: “We cannot spend the day in explanation.”

What matters is that right now is right now.

The implications of our obstacle are theoretical-they exist in the past and the future. We live in the moment. And the more we embrace that, the easier the obstacle will be to face and move.

You can take the trouble you’re dealing with and use it as an opportunity to focus on the present moment. To ignore the totality of your situation and learn to be content with what happens, as it happens, or as we talked about yesterday, love it.

To let each moment be new- wipe clear what came before and what others were hoping would come next.

Find the way that works for you to bring yourself right down into the present moment. Enlist others to help prevent you and your team from straying outside that moment.

One thing is certain. It’s not simply a matter of saying: Oh, I’ll live in the present. You have to work at it. Catch your mind when it wanders-don’t let it get away from you. Discard distracting thoughts. Leave things well enough alone—no matter how much you feel like doing otherwise.

Remember that this moment is not your life, it’s just a moment in your life. Focus on what is in front of you; right now. Ignore what it “represents” or it
“means” or “why it happened to you.”

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Daily Gratitude

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Daily Gratitude: Does this ring a bell – “Actions speak louder than words”? Sometimes cute phrases are too cute and they lose meaning because people say them over and over and they become rote.

I think this quote puts the relatively abstract “actions speak louder than words” in a much more user friendly perspective- it’s more visual.

I think we see this on an almost daily basis, especially with politicians. They say they are going to do one thing while they are campaigning and then, once elected, they become a totally different person.

People in your everyday lives can be like this too. Once someone does something opposite what they have said, how much do you trust them? Sure, you can give a second chance to someone but if this is repeated, how likely are you to keep giving chances?

More importantly, take a look at yourself. Have you ever told someone how much you love them and then find yourself blowing up at them or continually criticizing them? What’s up with that? Why do you act that way after you’ve spoken of your “love”.

It works internally too. Look at goals or resolutions you make and vow to keep. Next thing you know they’re out the window. Again what’s up?

That might be a good goal – to monitor or review your actions compared to your words and see how often they are incongruent. Then see if you can figure out why and more importantly, what can you do about it.