Ray's Daily

Enjoy yourself. These are the “good old days” you’re going to miss in the years ahead.

Author Unknown

It seems that many of my friends have had a really trying week so far. I get concerned when the majority of one’s time is spent dealing with disappointment or tasks too difficult to handle. Fortunately the weekends always have the potential for us to recharge if we put our troubles aside for at least a couple of days. Being retired and my own boss allows me to pursue whatever takes my fancy, I know others don’t have that luxury but they do have the opportunity to make positive choices during their working and non-working hours. The secret is to pursue happiness rather than waiting for it to show up.

Peter Clemens published an article on how to live happily that I might have shared with you before, if I did it is worth reading again, here is what he wrote.

How to Enjoy Life

In The Magic of Starting Small, I made the point that it is your days that define your life. In this article, I want to challenge the common perception that it is only possible to enjoy your leisure time. In particular, this article is targeted at the professional stuck in the 9 to 5 grind who longs for the weekend and, in the process, has given up on trying to find pleasure in the ordinary experiences we have every day.

1. Appreciate Beauty. Each day we come across beauty in a number of shapes and forms. It’s a shame, then, that many people have become so accustomed to this beauty that it largely goes unappreciated. I suggest looking again at the people, plants, gadgets, and buildings (to name but a few examples) around you and taking a moment to appreciate what makes them so special.

2. Connect With Nature. Nature is an amazing healer for the stresses and strains of modern life. Eating lunch in the park, attending to a vegetable garden in your backyard, or watching the sunset are just a few simple ideas for how you can enjoy the outdoors on a daily basis.

3. Laugh. E. E. Cummings once said “the most wasted of all days is one without laughter.” How very true. Never be too busy to laugh, or too serious to smile. Instead, surround yourself with fun people and don’t get caught up in your own sense of importance.

4. Have Simple Pleasures. A good cup of coffee when I first wake. Time spent playing with my 8 month old son. Cooking a nice meal in the evening. These may not seem terribly exciting, but they are some of the simple pleasures I enjoy in life. If you slow down for just a moment and take the time to appreciate these ordinary events, life becomes instantly more enjoyable.

5. Connect With People. In so many ways, it is our relationships with people that give us the most happiness in life. Perhaps, then, the best way to enjoy your work more is not to get a raise or a promotion, but rather to build rewarding relationships with your co-workers.

6. Learn. There is a strong link between learning and happiness. Given this, there is no excuse not to be stimulating your brain and learning something new each day. My favorite way to find time for learning is to make the most of the commute to and from work. Audiobooks and podcasts are great for this purpose.

7. Rethink Your Mornings and Evenings. Are the mornings a mad rush for you to get out the door? Do you switch off the TV at night and go straight to bed? I have personally experienced the profound benefits of establishing a routine in the morning and evening. For example, in the morning you may choose to wake an hour earlier and spend the time working on yourself, whether it be reading, writing or exercising. In the evening, consider spending some time just before bed reviewing your day or in meditation.

8. Celebrate Your Successes. During a normal day we are sure to have some minor successes. Perhaps you have successfully dealt with a difficult customer, made a sale, or received a nice compliment for your work. These aren’t events worth throwing a party for, but why not take a moment to celebrate your success? Share the experience with someone else, reward yourself with a nice lunch, or just give yourself a mental pat on the back.

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“The most important thing is to enjoy your life—to be happy—it’s all that matters.”

Audrey Hepburn

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A large, well established, Canadian lumber camp advertised that they were looking for a good lumberjack.

The very next day, a skinny little man showed up at the camp with his axe, and knocked on the head lumberjacks’ door. The head lumberjack took one look at the little man and told him to leave.

“Just give me a chance to show you what I can do,” said the skinny man.

“Okay, see that giant redwood over there?” said the lumberjack. “Take your axe and go cut it down.”

The skinny man headed for the tree, and in five minutes he was back knocking  on the lumberjack’s door. “I cut the tree down,” said the man.

The lumberjack couldn’t believe his eyes and said, “Where did you get the skill to chop down trees like that?”

“In the Sahara Forest,” replied the puny man.

“You mean the Sahara Desert,” said the lumberjack.

The little man laughed and answered back, “Oh sure, that’s what they call it now!”

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“I’ve been on a constant diet for the last two decades. I’ve lost a total of 789 pounds. By all accounts, I should be hanging from a charm bracelet.”

Erma Bombeck

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A wife invited some people to dinner. At the table, she turned to their six-year-old daughter and said, “Would you like to say the blessing?”

“I wouldn’t know what to say,” the girl replied.

“Just say what you hear Mommy say,” the wife answered.

The daughter bowed her head and said,

“Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to dinner?”

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Follow your dream!  Unless it’s the one where you’re naked at work during a fire drill.

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A redneck was stopped by a game warden in South Louisiana recently with two ice chests full of fish. He was leavin’ a cove well-known for its fishing.

The game warden asked the man, ‘Do you have a license to catch those fish?’

‘Naw, sir’, replied the redneck. ‘I ain’t got none of them there licenses. You must understand, these here are my pet fish.’

‘Pet fish?’

‘Yeah. Every night, I take these here fish down to the lake and let ’em swim ’round for awhile. Then, when I whistle, they jump right back into these here ice chests and I take ’em home.’

‘That’s a bunch of hooey! Fish can’t do that.’

The redneck looked at the warden for a moment and then said, ‘It’s the truth Mr. Government Man. I’ll show ya. It really works.’

‘O. K.’, said the warden. ‘I’ve got to see this!’ The redneck poured the fish into the lake and stood and waited. After several minutes, the warden says, ‘Well?’

‘Well, what?’, says the redneck.

The warden says, ‘When are you going to call them back?’

‘Call who back?’

‘The FISH’, replied the warden!

‘What fish?’, replied the redneck.

~~~

“The best part of life is not just surviving, but thriving with passion and compassion and humor and style and generosity and kindness.”

Maya Angelou

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Stay well, do good work, and have fun.

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

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