Veg Out Day

It's the day after Christmas. The holiday season's been great, big fun. Much motion. Traveled to, and fro. Busy. Spent wonderful time with family and friends. Hugged, laughed, and cherished. Drank and ate way too much. Been active. I'm tired. In need of rest and relaxation: some R&R.

Today's way slow compared to recent. That happens, right: crazy, super busy ... followed by crazy, super slow. And that's not a bad thing. Sometimes in life, we have to quiet things down; recharge, meditate, chill, veg-out. So while the English might call the day after Christmas Boxing Day, I think I'm going to call this Veg Out Day. You with me? But no need to answer - because like any well behaved vegetable, you don't have to.

Just lay there, and veg.

Veg Out Day is Good.

The Need For (Parentheticals)

If you think about it (it's good to think), parentheticals are the straw that stirs the good drink of understanding (and who doesn't like to understand, let alone enjoy a good drink). Without parentheticals, everything would just be too spread-sheetish; linear; flat; dot-connected-to-dot; black/white; monotone; unexplainable; hear-what-I-say-not-what-I-mean; sound-bite/bumper-sticker dimensions; just-the-facts Joe Fridays; clean, straight. (In other words: boring; lacking; frustrating).

On the contrary (life is full of contradictions), we live in a world that's all about color; bumps; curves; loops; round-abouts; dipsy-do's; messiness; the-need-for-read-between-the-lines-explanations; Power Points; be-that-as-it-mays; on-the-other-hands; what-ifs; diversity; Socratic dialogue; subtleties; interpretations (well, you get the picture: it's a box of chocolates thing: and that's all I gots ta say 'bout that, Forest).

So let's embrace, appreciate and promote the actual (well) written and (well) spoken words, facts, and matter-of-facts (especially when they are accurate and clear). But lets also celebrate the need for parentheticals (because words alone aren't always meaningful). Good parentheticals (as opposed to many of my previous parentheticals) - can help explain a lot of (what-the-heck?) things that need more (in-depth) explaining.

Parentheticals are Good. (Parenthetically speaking ;)

Self-Control

We've all been reading about the aggressive, protesting, disaffected youth in Greece who are causing incredible unrest and damage through violence, rioting, bombing, and a lot of ugly behavior. It's bad. Now this mess is spreading across the rest of Europe - where most recently young adults in Italy, Spain, Denmark and France have also started to riot, burn cars, attack banks, and again, cause lots of expensive damage - physically and emotionally.

So what's the deal!?

Well, the thing is, they're really peeved about soaring unemployment, globalization, economic turmoil, and too much Abba on the radio. Indeed, times are tough all around, and it's making lots of folks angry, all around. And what's the potential of that type of violent behavior happening here in the U.S.? Given all the bad stuff taking place on our own island, all we need is our young adults rioting in the streets. NOT! (Insert personal opinion here: by electing Barack Obama, I think that's helped quell that potential, at least for now.)

Unfortunately, I personally don't have a quick or easy remedy for what ails us, as the problems are big, deep and wide. (But how do you eat an elephant? Bite by bite.) While we individually can't solve this situation, we can individually do a better job of taking care of what we can control: our own emotions, understanding, perspective, attitude, aptitude and mindfulness. Sure, those "intangibles" won't put a paycheck in the bank, gas in your tank, or food on the table per se. But it will help. If we can't control what we can't control, let's control what we can.

Ourselves.

Oh yea, and maybe, just maybe, every young adult - throughout the world for that matter - should read the super-cool, award-winning, hip-happenin, best-selling book Pocket PorchLights (excuse the absolutely shameless plug). After all, it was written to help young adults succeed at work and life, while at the same time, helping their friends, families, employers and communities enjoy more happiness, compassion, and success. That's its cause. But to achieve that success, on both an individual and collective basis, than each of us has to personally take action. As the saying goes: there may not be an "i" in team, but there's an "m" and an "e."

And you can't have self-control, without the self.

Self-Control is Good.

Path to Prosperity

Happy holidays. Hope you and yours are doing great.

Regardless of your situation, I’m sure lots of us would like things to be better, in one way or another. Times are challenging. For sure. And even if things are okay for you, there’s still uneasiness given the dynamics of today. The uncertainty of tomorrow is bothersome, to say the least.

That said, the importance, now more than ever, of continuous learning and self-development, helping others, and generating prosperity as best we can, is tantamount. Sure, times are crazy. And no doubt, there's so much going on in the world and our lives that we can't control. Be that as it may, we do control (assuming you're a functioning adult) what we do personally.

In any given day, regardless of what's going on, we can choose to learn more, work more, strive more, be more, love more, help more: you get the picture. While hope and faith are great - we must also do, act, live, work, support, aid, nourish, persevere, and accomplish. And only by appreciating all of those collective responsibilities and mandates, and embracing the importance of them all - can we achieve prosperity of wallet, mind, body, family, soul, and life.

It's a package deal.

Prosperity is Good.

Happiness is Contagious? (Who Knew?)

Can you believe that it took a 20 year study to "scientifically" confirm that happiness is contagious. But I don't think that's a news flash, do you? Do we really need a 20 year study, which tracked more than 4,700 people, and its subsequent report published in a British medical journal, to tell us that one smile can influence another smile.

Being nice and happy is not only good for you, but good for others. No duh, right. Now granted, I appreciate that common sense is not so common - but still - it's a no duh, right. Oh yea, in a parallel no-duh ... it really does turn out that misery loves company: that's now a fact as well. Oh goody. Now, while I jest at this study, one thing that I did get from it is this important data point: That happiness spreads outward by three degrees - i.e. to the friends of friends of friends. And that happiness spreads more consistently and more quickly than unhappiness.

Science has spoken. And it says: Don't be a grump, be happy.

And pass the happiness on.

Happiness is Good.