Life is short. In order to live the best life you can live, I invite you to, everyday, make a conscious choice to be happy and do the following:
1 – Promise yourself that you will be happy. Promise that you will accept, approve and love yourself. Promise that you will always make the healthy choice. Promise that you will take good care of yourself, and put your wellbeing first. Promise that you will protect yourself and never do anything that would harm you. Promise that you will learn to love yourself and be kind to yourself, knowing that this will enhance the source of the kindness and love from where you will be able to generously give to others. Promise that you will be a blessing to the world by making others happy almost effortlessly because you are already happy. Promise that everyday you will do what you know you need to do to have a great day, and by having a series of great days you will have a great, happy life!
2 – Practice gratitude. Don’t focus on what you don’t have, but give thanks for what you already have.
3 – Practice mindfulness. Be here, now. Enjoy the silence. Meditate. Observe. Look at the big and the small. Be aware of the wonders surrounding you. Pay attention. Be alert. Look for beauty and goodness, and see beauty, goodness, and miracles all around you. Allow yourself to be amazed. Be in connection, communication and communion with the Divine all moments of your life. Realize that this planet, all of it, wherever you may be, is holy ground. The whole Universe is our sanctuary. Live as if you are in Heaven already.
4 – Practice acceptance. It is what it is. Stop feeling frustrated, disappointed, mad and sad because the world is not the way you think it should be, or others are not the way you wanted them to be, or your life is not what you dreamt it to be. The world is the way it is, others are the way they are, and you are the way you are because we are here, all of us, to learn and to teach. You are living the experiences that you are supposed to live in order to learn the lessons you are supposed to learn, and teach the lessons you are supposed to teach. Others are also living the experiences they are supposed to live, and whatever they may be going through also creates opportunities for you to learn and to teach. So, learn and teach. Accept what is while being fully cognizant that all is changing all the time, and that you have the power to create.
5 – Be aware of change and believe in its power. Learn that you have the tremendous power to choose empowering thoughts and control your destiny. Embrace the life you already have as a point of departure to an even better life. Live the best life you can live by choosing powerful thoughts. If you don’t like the life you are living, change it. Change your thoughts, and start all over again.
6 – Practice non-criticism. Break the habit of comparing yourself with others. Stop focusing on the negative aspects of someone else’s life. Stop criticizing. Don’t waste your time with those things. As much as possible, accept others as they are. Develop an understanding that they are on their own journeys as you are on yours. Accept the fact that everyone has his own story, and everyone has positive and negative attributes. Focus on the positive. Look for the good in others. Look for those things in them that are worth of praise and bring a smile to your face. Be compassionate, not judgmental. If you don’t have anything positive to say, don’t say anything. Try to help them, but remember that you can only help those who want to be helped, and allow themselves to be helped. Try to help them but protect yourself first. Remember that your first promise is that you will choose what makes you happy and that you will protect yourself. There are things that neither you nor anyone else can do for them; they have to do on their own. There are things that they will only learn on their own time. So, develop compassion and acceptance. Love one another. Love your own self. Use your time wisely. Live your own life, not someone else’s. Keep yourself so busy with your own development that you have no time to criticize others.
7 – Remember that we are one. We are all connected in ways that are beyond our understanding. What we do to others, we do to ourselves. Do good. Yes, there are bad individuals out there manipulating and exploiting others, and they seem to be getting all the good things life has to offer. Don’t envy them. We reap what we sow, receive what we give, harvest what we plant. All the pain and suffering they inflict will inevitably come back to haunt them. Believe that all the good you give out will inevitably come back to bless you. Stick with the good. Do your best not to hurt anyone. Be careful about what you say and also how you say it. Mean words hurt a lot. Give of yourself to alleviate the pain and suffering of others.
8 – Don’t envy. Don’t be resentful or jealous that others have more than you. Believe in the abundance of the Universe and your birthright to prosper. Believe that you are a child of the Universe and that you deserve all the good the Universe has to offer. Rejoice with all that you have. Rejoice and bless others’ good fortune and believe there is plenty for all.
9 – Love everybody and believe that everybody loves you. Love, care and share. Give of yourself everyday to make someone else’s life a little better. Make a difference in someone else’s life. Be compassionate and patient. Help others. Smile. Make them feel good about themselves. Help the world. Do what you can to bring more justice, peace, unity and happiness to the world. Be kind, gentle and generous. Be respectful. Share your toys. And remember that it is by making others happy that you increase your own happiness.
10 – Apologize. As much as possible, repair what you may have broken. Acknowledge your errors, your faults, and don’t hesitate to say, “I’m sorry.” Make amends.
11 – Don’t allow other people’s negativity to take hold of you. Each one has his own problems. They have theirs and you have yours. Don’t make someone else’s problems yours. It’s their problem, not yours. You already have enough problems of your own.
12 – Don’ react instantly. Expand the gap between stimulus and response. Take control of your responses. Take three deep breaths before choosing your response. Even better… for no reason at all, just pause, take three deep breaths, and go back to the center of your being many times during the day.
13 – Work on completely removing complaints, regrets, and worries from your days. Don’t relive the drama and the trauma. Don’t store resentment. Stored resentment manifests itself as disease. Release the sad past. Stop telling your sad stories. Stop showing your wounds. Forgive everyone: others and yourself. Forgive and forget. Move on. Let go. And don’t worry about the future. Worrying is nothing more than using your imagination to create something you don’t want. Discard all doubts. Don’t entertain negative thoughts. Fill your days with positive affirmations, and keep imagining a very successful, happy life where you are a blessing to all.
14 – Reduce the stress in your life. Stress leads to illness. Work everyday to make your life a little bit less stressful. Simplify. Don’t accumulate. Get rid of the stuff you don’t need. Clean up and organize your space. Fix what is broken. Do at least a little bit of what you love everyday, but also tackle some of the unpleasant but necessary tasks everyday. Plan your work and work your plan everyday.
15 – Be optimistic. Focus on what is right, good and positive, not on what is wrong, bad and negative. Choose uplifting thoughts. Say to yourself and proclaim to the world, “Life is good. Life is great. I love my life!” Cultivate hope. Believe that improvement is possible, that everything is getting better, and that the best is yet to come. Work on improving yourself, knowing that your improvement is your best contribution to the world. And remember that it doesn’t matter so much what you do as the love you put into the doing. Give your contribution, however small. Plant seeds even if you are not going to be here to enjoy the fruits; someone else will. Work within your circle of influence, however small, doing the things you are able to do, however small, and then see your impact and circle of influence expand.
16 – Express love. Practice giving and receiving love. Smile. Use every opportunity you have to tell people that you love them. Look for the best in others. Make others feel good about themselves. Never underestimate the power of a good word, a compliment, a smile. Find opportunities to praise them. Let them know that you notice and appreciate who they are and the good they do. Bring a smile to their faces. Help them be the best they can be. Support their growth. Help them bring out their best and bless the world with their unique gifts. Thank them often. And whenever possible, hug them. Hugs are miraculous. Hug, don’t hate.
17 – Your thoughts, words and deeds determine the quality of your life. Choose them wisely. Choose what you watch, what you read, and the people who you listen to and surround yourself with. Avoid the complainers and criticizers. Avoid the loud and aggressive ones. Choose love. Choose peace. Choose cooperation and collaboration.
18 – Your mind influences your body and your body influences your mind. Take good care of both. Practice mindfulness. Adopt a healthy lifestyle, with a good diet and physical exercise. As I say, “Choose the good NuRSE: good Nutrition, Rest, Stretching and Exercise. If you remember this NuRSE, you may never need one.”
19 – Dream. Life is full of possibilities. You can do whatever you want. You can be whoever you want to be. If you are not living a life you love, start all over again. Focus on the posibilities, and don’t listen to the nay-sayers, especially the one inside your head. Imagination is a divine resource. Use it. Nurture it. Listen! What is calling you? Listen to your Higuest Self and go follow your bliss.
20 – Finally, realize that everything changes. Nothing is permanent. Nothing stays the same. Don’t fear death; it is inevitable. Sooner or later, it will come. Think of it as a transition. See life as a passage, during which you were given a body. Consider that there is no beginning and no end, and that nothing is destroyed or created; it just changes form. Be courageous to resist death, but also to accept it. Live a good life so when it is all said and done you may look back and smile with no regrets. You are an eternal spiritual being having a temporary human experience. You are not your physical body. You may say that you occupy your physical body. In fact, you have occupied many physical bodies since you were born, right? Where is the newborn you once were? In the divine realm there is no death. Our Bodies change but our divine essence does not. We are changeles. We are birthless and deathless. We have died already many times during our own existence. No need to fear physical death.
There you go… my happy life formula, revised and expanded. It works for me, and I am sure it will work for you too. Apply it deliberately and diligently and enjoy an excellent, happy life!
Blessings!
