Becoming a Happier Person

“The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life.”                                                                                                 
 Brian Tracy

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The  gift of curiosity coupled with an urgency to take immediate action to seek new discoveries afford me many blessings in my life. A particular incident in my career comes to mind now. I developed my own creative marketing approach in my field. It was innovative, yet uncomplicated. I thought this tool would be of value worldwide. I was on cloud nine when I received an invitation to go to Switzerland to talk about this approach at an international marketing conference. It was disappointing  to say the least when two European representatives expressed their lack of interest remarking that they already had their market share and there was no reason for them to put out such additional effort.
However it continued to prove beneficial to me and I continued to use that approach until I retired.
 
For some time I have been sharing through my postings some of the tools and ideas I have been implementing to facilitate a life of abundance. I realize many people have successfully used their own tried-and-true approach. My disappointment comes when I am approached by those who express a desire to make positive changes, but they do not take move to the next step, the action,  to implement any of the ideas.
 
The following three areas that created both excitement and resistance to change have surfaced this year by my readers:
 
Realistic Budgets
For many it seems easier not to deal with the consequences of debt, overspending retirement savings, and paying ridiculous interest rates on credit card debt. One thing I am proud about with managing our budget is I have never paid interest on any credit card charges. In fact I benefit from charging everything possible because I receive 1:5% rebate on all charges and I pay the balance in full every month. Some years this rebate will pay for a mini vacation that is listed on my Dream Board.
 
Dream Boards
A few weeks ago I received a letter from the author of the book Feng Shui Your Life. She appreciated my passing on her website when I quoted from her book the tremendous success people are having with this tool of a Dream Board to create a life of abundance. On the same day I received a reply from one of my readers saying they still have not found the time put together their Dream Board. As I review mine right now on my office wall, I see two on the postings we have on our board that we have already manifested.
 
Positive Thinking
To think positive in a world that is focused on negativity offers a challenge for those who want to turn around their negative thinking. If you listen to conversations with family and friends, you can sometimes hear their predictions of a negative outcome long before it becomes a reality. They have become so accustomed to talking that way they are not even aware they are setting themselves up for failure.
 
 
The following information is paraphrased from the book I read Happiness Gene by James Baird, PhD with Laurie Nader PhD. http://www.drjamesdbaird.com/
It’s a leap of the mind to think that because a handful of scientific experiments have shown a direct cause and effect between positive emotional states and genetic changes that can change the course of human evolution by becoming a happier person. But really what do you have to lose? Anxiety, depression, Low self-esteem, destructive patterns of behavior?
And what do you have to gain?  A positive outlook on life, consistent optimism, resilience in face of adversity, the ability to perceive opportunities instead of feeling overwhelmed by obstacles?
 
This book along with many others that I have in my tool box helps me when I begin to question myself if all this positivity can work for everyone.