Once-A-Day Prescriptions for Joy
by: Keith Varnum
1. Act
whimsically at least once a day.
Do
something that is outrageous or totally out of character, out of the box, not
the “usual” you. Invite spontaneity. Do something meaningless, without any
purpose or value—just because you feel like it, just because it’s fun! Surprise
yourself!
Don’t
dress outside in. Dress inside out. Let your spirit define “who you are” rather
than the outside world. Don’t rely on external image—clothing, hairstyle,
status symbols—to tell people who you are. Wear your inner self proudly and let
it attract what is most harmonious to you.
Expand
your playground, your arena for self-expression. Practice harmless and minor
outrages. Seek a larger freedom in your life. In the unexpected comes the joy
of feeling truly alive.
2.
Throw away one item a day.
Or give
it away to Goodwill or someone who will actually use it. For every unused item
you discard, you create the space for a truly useful item to come into your
world.
Clear
the decks! A major cause of loss of energy is lots of “stuff” that accumulates
around us. Schedule time to keep the piles—physical and
mental—from building up. If you don’t, the backlog will sap your energy
and overwhelm you. You may think that doing Feng-Shui
takes too much time, but creating open space in your world actually frees up
more time and energy to attract the people and opportunities that will really
satisfy your heart and soul.
3.
Every day forgive one act of yours or someone you know.
By living
a life of conscious self-acceptance and learning to forgive ourselves, we
become able to forgive others. The gift of forgiveness is for ourselves, not the person who caused us pain. By forgiving,
we are taking back the control that we have given over to those who we feel
have hurt us.
By
learning to forgive others, we give ourselves the gift of freedom from the
past. Forgiveness loosens the debilitating constraints of anger, resentment,
cynicism and despair—and frees our heart to swell with joy. When you feel
someone has harmed you, try to understand the situation by putting yourself in
his or her shoes. Stop holding others and yourself hostage. Accept our human
tendency to make mistakes and move forward.
4. Meet
one new person a day.
Every
human being has a unique story to tell—and a special gift for you. Every
personal life story you hear expands your own personal horizon of
possibilities. Even a one-minute encounter with a stranger enlarges your
universe.
5.
Discover one new shape in Nature every day.
As you
encounter shapes and forms that are new to your awareness each day, you
increase the possibilities for re-shaping your world. As you expand your
experience of the infinite spectrum of ways life expresses itself on the
planet, you add to the range of choices and options available to you.
6.
Every day ask one fresh question of life you’ve never asked before.
The
quality and scope of one’s life is determined by the quality and scope of one’s
questions. Questions open doors, invite change, welcome new opportunities.
Question the past—liberate your future!
7. Each
day eat one new food you’ve never eaten before.
Or mix
foods and ingredients that you’ve never combined before. Or eat a type of
cuisine you’ve never enjoyed before. As you open to fresh culinary experiences,
you also open to fresh social and spiritual adventures.
8.
Change one old entrenched attitude each day.
Take
ownership of your attitude. You control your attitude. It’s not something that
you are genetically or environmentally stuck with. You can choose your
attitude.
Avoid
all-or-nothing thinking. When we fall into the trap of the all-or-nothing
mindset, we experience any obstacle as equaling total failure of the entire
project—or of one’s entire life. Try not to overreact or blow events out of
proportion. Focus on what is working in a situation, not on what’s not working
at the moment. Don’t let the little things drive you crazy, weigh you down or
immobilize you. Lighten up, smile more, frown less.
Remember
that each step in life is just one small step—and is not necessarily a vital or
crucial step. If you don’t succeed at that step, try another approach in
another direction from another angle. Keep the big picture in mind. Breathe.
9. Find
a fresh aspect of your life to laugh about every day.
How do
angels fly? They take themselves lightly.
Certainly
there are times when life presents major challenges and one needs to act
clearly and directly, but behaving responsibly and efficiently does not by any
means preclude humor and light-heartedness. In fact, a flexible, fluid, upbeat
approach and attitude is crucial to releasing magic and miracles into the
healing equation.
Inspiration
and breakthrough are often born from the spirit of playfulness and exuberance.
A spontaneous wink, a funny smile, a comic gesture can unlock deep fears and
stress in a stern person or tense situation. Through conscious silliness the
soul can emerge.
Doctors,
nurses and attendants now use "clowning" in hospitals to jolt and
move the healing process with patients. Scientific studies prove that when
people are laughing and having fun, they experience less physical and
psychological pain—and recover faster. Laugh more, mend quicker and live
longer!
10. Be
silent and still once a day.
Make
regular time for yourself in which you can be totally alone. Just sit quietly
with no expectations. Do nothing!
This
may feel very uncomfortable and strange in the beginning. Do it anyway.
Give
yourself time and space for the inner voice to make itself heard. Your inner
voice will speak either during that quiet time, or else during the events of
the rest of your day. Or a synchronistic event will occur. Or someone will tell
you the message you need to hear. Or you will get a sudden flash of insight in
the shower or watching a movie.
11.
Tolerate one less undesirable aspect of your life each day.
Take
action to change the situations in which you are settling for less than your
desired dream. You can only compromise yourself—and your dream—so much before
you lose sight of the vision altogether. The things you are putting up with
keep you from being yourself and evolving as a human being.
Speak
up. Once you know what you need, let others know. Be honest with others about
your needs and boundaries. If you remain silent, you’ll disappoint yourself and
others more than the truth ever could do.
12.
Take on one fresh risk or challenge every day.
Fear
less, dare more. Take at least one action each day that scares you. Face one
truth you haven’t been able or willing to acknowledge before. Don’t let fear
paralyze you. Set yourself free.
Take
your aliveness up a notch. Ask for more and reach for more. Upgrade your dream.
Revitalize your life. New experiences make our lives richer.
13.
Tell one new person your dream everyday.
Network. Elicit feedback from a trusted friend, mentor or family member.
Listen to a neighbor, co-worker or store clerk. Value your relationships. Call
someone who is uplifting, or uplift someone else.
It’s
your joy—to use or lose.
|
About
The Author Keith
Varnum has 30 years of practical success as an
author, accupuncturist, personal coach, filmmaker,
vision quest guide and international seminar leader, and is the owner of http://www.TheDream.com and http://TheCareerDoctor.net. |
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