Chart Your Course

Unhappy By Default

Have you ever bought into the  “I’ll be happy when…” attitude?  Sadly, I have far to often in my life.  You see, I was unhappy by default.

Image Courtesy of James Jordan

• I had failed to act more on the things in life that made me happy and defaulted to the every day and mundane.
• I neglected to notice the blessings in my life, but rather, I paid more attention to the negatives and the things my life lacked.
• I failed to act in ways that generated happiness.   Sure I was very active in life, and I was doing a lot of things I love. But I failed to play an “active role” in creating happiness.  I failed to deliberately look for happiness.

“It requires some effort to achieve a happy outlook on life, and most people don’t make it.”
— Gregg Easterbrook

Happy on Purpose

Thankfully I decided to be Happy On Purpose! I realized that happiness wasn’t something that could only be attained only after I achieved “this” or I achieved “that.”   Rather… Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve written before about regret; those momentary feelings of loss, disappointment, or dissatisfaction with something in our life. I would warrant that all of us have experienced some type of regret in our life. Something we wished we had done differently, or perhaps not have done at all.

It’s my belief that those who say they don’t have any regrets don’t mean they haven’t ever had any. What they mean is that they changed their focus, or their outlook about the specific circumstances. They learned from it, and they turned it into a positive.

Changing one’s focus or keeping one’s focus on what is important is the key to recovery from illness, trauma, or depression, and it is a key to achieving happiness. Focusing on regrets, focusing on what’s not working in our life leads to depression.

My mom always said,  “Anyone can think themselves into a depression.”  She’s right.  Everyone has had things happen to them, or has done things that could get them down. But focusing on the past, focusing on our failings doesn’t help at all.

Choosing to focus on our short-comings, or negative experiences can lead a happy person to a state of depression. Read the rest of this entry »

I still struggle with what I want to be when I grow up. You see I want to do everything and be everything.

I want to be an artist. I want to be a life-coach. I want to be an inspiring mom. I want to be a healer. I want to be an art-therapist. I want to be a successful business women. I want to be a multi-millionaire. I want to be an author. I want to make a difference in the lives of others.

I want, I want, I want…

Well I want it all.

The amazing thing is that I am doing all those things. Sure maybe not to the level I plan on doing them. But I am doing them. How you may wonder? How can I do all that and more?

Read the rest of this entry »