#One: “It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor.”
There will always be a more excellent car. A bigger house. A fancier vacation. When we continue to strive for that next best thing, we can never be happy with what’s right in front of us. Being thankful is the cornerstone of happiness. Love what you have, and you’ll never need a thing more.
#Two: “You must live for another if you wish to live for yourself.”
Gandhi. Mandela. Mother Theresa. None ever said, “I wish I would have spent more of my time living for myself.” The act of giving back is an indirect way of giving to ourselves. We become the actual recipients of living for others, and it’s a win-win for everyone. When it comes to what we offer the world, think from 2nd place.
#Three: “A man is as miserable as he thinks he is.”
The power of the mind is one of the most underappreciated aspects of human happiness. Beyond providing for our basic needs — shelter, food & safety — happiness is a choice. We get to wake up every single day and decide if we’re going to be happy or not. When we choose not to be happy, we’re letting outside factors dictate our emotions. Choose happiness.
#Four: “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.”
Everyone is fighting their own battle, much like we are fighting our own. When life makes it easy to snap, judge, or get angry, just remember that we do not know where the other person stands in their life currently. Approach them with kindness and we just might change their day.
#Five: “As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is but how good it is that matters.”
When we think of our lives in the terms of stories, it helps us write a book worth reading. And in this story, we have the opportunity to be the hero. The good guy, not the villain. We can’t rewrite any of the chapters that we’ve already written, but we can rewrite the ending.
#Six: “Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.”
The ancient interpretation of YOLO (You Only Live Once). Imagine your life compacted into a single day. That day is today. What do you want to do with it? Adventure? Love? Fun? Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed for any of us, so there’s no point in waiting around for it. Let's start living today.
#Seven: “We do not dare to do many things because they are difficult, but they are difficult because we do not dare to do them”
The things we don’t know are the things that become difficult because our imaginations tend to exaggerate the risk, both in severity and likelihood. If we can get a handle on that fear, to understand the risk, fear can be greatly diminished, and the act can be undertaken.
