The Grasshopper was whistling a happy tune the other day when he said, “Be happy when happy is here.”

If you’ve been paying attention to your happiness, you know for sure that it comes and goes on its own timetable and is never a permanent resident.

Happy is a feeling and it’s wise to feel it when it pays a visit.

I, like you, have found that some people are happier than others. That means they have more happy moments. There is no one I’ve ever met that is always happy. Anyone who’s selling that is mixing up snake oil in their garage.

So what makes one person happier than another? I find they are more open to visits from happiness. It’s the same for people we deem “lucky.” They’re more open to the possibility of something happening.

You’ll never hear them say, “I’ll never be happy.” They also don’t use something as a condition for happiness as in, “I’ll be happy when such and such happens.” Happier people leave the door unlocked and allow happiness free entry when it drops by.

Not only are they more open to happiness, they celebrate it when it’s here.

We close ourselves off to happiness when we chase it and try and capture it in a jar. It’s like grasping at air. Happiness can’t be contained but it can be welcomed and celebrated. Those are the two mindsets that seem to cause happiness to come by more often and hang around for a second cup of coffee.

“Being happy when happy is here” is celebrating happiness – feeling it and enjoying it when it arrives. You can guarantee more arrivals by putting out the welcome mat – the willingness to be open to it, rather than setting up conditions for its visit.

When you are open to happiness, you recognize it more often and welcome it in. When happiness is conditional, you may not recognize it when it knocks on your door and ignore it like it’s someone attempting to sell you aluminum siding or their brand of religion.

It’s hard to come up with a better reminder than the one left for us by our 16th President: “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.”

Make up your mind to be willing to be happy when happy is here and you’ll be the person celebrating happiness more often than most.

All the best,

John

The Grasshopper gave me this conundrum: “A truth lies inside a lie and a lie lies inside a truth.” What does that mean?

I haven’t a clue, so let’s explore.

It seems that “truth” has to be defined as that which has no opposite and is whole, like the whole truth. A “lie” is defined as that which has infinite opposites and is fragmented.

So how do so many opposites lie inside that which has none and vice-versa?

Lies are fragments of the truth, meaning the truth can be represented by infinite pieces of fragmentation, each containing a representation of truth – sort of like a hologram.

But truth is not an amalgam of those pieces. Each piece is just a reflection of the whole, not actually a part of it.

So when you see yourself in a full-length mirror, you are not really seeing a part of you, only a reflection of you. What you are seeing is a lie, and depending on how many angles you view it from, you are seeing lots of lies.

The you you are seeing is a lie. The real you is whole. It’s the truth.

Your reflection is the lie inside the truth. The truth inside the lie is the wholeness the reflection seeks. Yes, that last line made my eyes glaze over too.

Each of our outer manifestations purports to be us. That’s a lie. We attempt to define our whole self by a collection of labels or behaviors (lies). “I am a (fill in a label)” is what we claim. “I am my (fill in a behavior}” is what we hold up as the truth.

Our whole self can never be defined by a label or fragmented piece of behavior. It’s like Lao Tzu said thousands of years ago, “The name which can be named is not the eternal name.”

Each time we claim to be anything other than the whole, we are lying, which, sadly, is most of the time.

What happens when we stop holding on to a shiny fragment and claiming it’s the whole? It’s then we find the truth inside the lie.

All the best,

John

Who hasn’t experienced humdrum? It’s a state of mind that keeps us humming the same tune. Is there a cure? Yes, I’m happy to report that there is.

The remedy arrives by adding four more syllables to the word “Cure.”

Cure then becomes curiosity.

Humdrum put down roots and settled in the day we stopped getting curious.

You don’t have to roust humdrum from your mind; it will leave on its own volition when you get curious.

Did curiosity really kill the cat or was it just the catalyst to kill off a dull existence?

Find out for yourself by getting curious.

What you will find is that curiosity opens your mind to options. Those options often lead to passion for something that was lying dormant under the doormat of humdrum.

The cure is to get curious.

Start to wonder about things to get curious about and act on what you come up with.

Curiosity also engages your creativity. How curious are you about what creations you can come up with? New possibilities become more probable when curiosity becomes your mindset of choice.

There is nothing to buy and no 7-step plan you need to follow. Just decide to get curious and discover the cure for humdrum.

All the best,

John

Like everyone, I have my hot buttons. I don’t get hooked by them as much as I used to but I still have my moments.

One of my most “sizzling” ones is the funhouse mirror logic many people have bought into that they don’t have to participate in their own success. They passively expect success without participation, as though attaining success is akin to getting a massage.

I know countless people who have gone to real estate seminars where they present all the ways you can make money in real estate. I’m only guessing here but I’m willing to bet that the number of people who actually make money in real estate as a result is less than 5%.

Did they receive bad information? I don’t think so. The methods presented all work when you work at them. How many times have you heard that someone “tried” a diet and it didn’t work? “I tried the chocolate covered snails diet and it didn’t work.” All diets, no matter how bizarre, work. You just have to continue to work at them.

What’s not being said is, “I expect results without having to do all the work.” That is a fairy tale that will never become a reality.

“I prayed and prayed and I didn’t get what I wanted.” What did you “do and do” to get what you desired? Did you participate in your own success?

Years ago, I got the best piece of advice when I was out of work. I was at a Richard Bolles seminar in 1980 and heard this: “When you’re unemployed, your full-time job is seeking employment.” He went on to add that if your normal job required 8 hours of work a day, you needed to spend 8 hours each day that you were unemployed looking for work.

“I just can’t find anything.” “No one is hiring.” “The job market is soft.”

“Did you work 8 hours a day looking for work?”

“Well, I made some calls, sent out some emails and they didn’t get back to me.”

Think about the absurdity of the next statement which I’ve heard hundreds of times: “I joined a gym but it didn’t work for me.”

“Did you go to the gym regularly?” “Did you do the exercises they recommended?” “Did you do more than pay your fee and buy a cool workout outfit?”

The level of expectation that people expect without participation is enormous, in fact, epidemic.

Just once, I’d like to hear someone say, “I’m just not willing to work that hard to get what I say I want.” That response would be rarer than a politician answering the question you asked.

If you are unwilling to participate in your own success, you will remain unsuccessful with a litany of stories as to why something didn’t work.

You and your actions are the main characters in your success story. If you’re always a bridesmaid and never a bride, the probability is high that you’ve never gotten behind the wheel – you’re just along for the ride.

There is a certain amount of luck involved in any success but it plays a cameo role compared to the star of the show – Participation.

All the best,

John

What’s the ultimate feeling? I submit that the ultimate feeling is being loved.

For me, there is no comparison to the feeling of being loved; it’s in a class all by itself.

You can take all the other feelings combined and they can’t even come close to the feeling of being loved.

Watch even wizened, hardcore, stone faced people melt when a cute, cuddly puppy nuzzles with them. What are they feeling? – Being loved.

There is a therapeutic effect of the feeling of being loved. There is a measurable warmth that comes over you. And I’m only guessing here, but I suspect those feelings are ladened with Oxytocin which has been labeled the “bonding hormone.”

I’m also guessing that there have been times you have felt unloved. Me too.

What to do?

It may not always be possible to go down to the “Puppy Palace” and pretend you’re going to buy a dog and just play with several until you feel the warmth.

Instead, notice that there is a part of you that loves you 24/7.

You can tap into your own reservoir of self love even when the puppy is asleep.

It’s a two-step process for most:

1. Take it on faith that there is a part of you that loves you no matter what.

2. Tap into it just by noticing it.

When you notice your own ability to generate feeling loved, you stop “nobody loves me” dead in its tracks and bask in the feelings of being loved.

There is a part of you that has your back. It loves you. What a great feeling that is. It’s nice to know that feeling is available even when no one else is around.

If you are inside of your head convincing yourself that no one loves you, take an inventory of your body and find that wellspring of warmth and stay there until you have all the puppy slobber you can handle.

All the best,

John

I asked myself a question: “Is watered down input effective?”

My answer was, “It depends.”

What does it depend on? Mostly on whether the person on the receiving end is in the frame of mind to receive an undiluted message.

If you approach everyone as having the same sensibilities as you, you will offer them the input style you prefer.

I prefer people not to sugarcoat their advice. That approach gets my attention quickly and has less chance for misinterpretation.

I can tell you from experience that that approach doesn’t work for everybody. In fact, only a small percentage of people respond well to it.

You can be razor sharp and spot-on with your message and not reach someone who requires some water to cut their whiskey. Reminds me of a story . . .

Last year, I was talking with a family member on the phone about their life situation. I could plainly hear that they were so invested in their story of why things were the way they were that I would have little chance of getting through. So I brought out the big guns and went for the direct approach. I felt better; they felt worse. More importantly, my message fell on plugged ears. They received no benefit because I wasn’t paying attention.

So how can you tell the most useful approach? Pay attention to how the other person delivers their message. Once you see their delivery style, you’ll know their preference and you can tailor your delivery accordingly.

Final thought: If you continue with your “patented” approach, your message has less chance of getting through more often.

All the best,

John

I went on a blind date a number of years ago and after returning home I reflected on the evening and had this realization: I didn’t laugh once.

What a sad realization that was. Here I was in communication with another human being for a few hours and not once did I laugh. It was the first and last date we had.

I like to laugh. I look for opportunities to make others laugh, but this night the cricket choir was chirping.

It would be too easy to lay the blame at the feet of my date, but it was deeper than that. I know from experience that you have to bring the party with you in order to party. That wasn’t the case. I was fully prepared to put myself out there and see what happened, yet nothing happened.

As I dissected this experience further, I found the culprit – Judgement.

From the minute I arrived, I was in my head judging this person, judging everything about them. The worst part was that I thought my judgements were “true.” And when something is true, it gives it more gravity, more seriousness.

I made a discovery that night – Judgement and laughter can’t occupy the same space.

My judgements were getting in the way of my good time. They were also messing with my communication skills.

This phenomenon of absence of laughter in the face of judgements applies to all communication, not just dating. There is a lot less communication going on when laughter is kept outside the room, and judgement is the bouncer.

Judgements serve a purpose, but when your only purpose is to judge there is a lot less communicating going on and a lot less laughter.

If you find yourself being far too serious, take a moment to see if you’re in full-blown judgement mode. And if you are, just stop and take a moment to laugh at what an ass you’re being.

Here’s the bumper sticker: Judge Less, Laugh More.

All the best,

John

There are many careers that are short-lived. Professional gamblers and NFL running backs immediately come to mind. The average career of a professional running back is about 5 years; professional gamblers even less.

Talk to these people and many of them will regale you with their successes. If they were really that successful, their career would have lasted much longer. The point is that we and they, when looking back, sort for more of the successes.

Really, who wants to sort for the failures? The stand-up comedian, who now works as a greeter at Wal-Mart, doesn’t turn to his wife at the Christmas party and say, “Tell them about the night they booed me off stage.”

If we examine our successes and failures a bit more closely, they’re a lot closer in number. My friend Jerry Stocking calls this phenomenon, “Ignoring the downside.” His point is that you are ignoring about 50% of your life.

That part of you that you are ignoring will ignore your cold shoulder and just hang around. It needs to be acknowledged and felt before it will leave you alone.

It’s easy to embrace the upside but our prickly parts need a hug too.

This isn’t about dwelling on your losses; it’s just a reminder to include them when they knock on your door. To do otherwise will have them hang out on the front porch ’til the cows come home waiting for your autograph.

Don’t chase the feeling of a loss away; it will only return another day. Feel the loss as fully as you feel any success. It will prevent you from living in the past and leave you in a state of acceptance for whatever the present moment brings.

You cannot not accept reality. Not accepting what is real is magical thinking on parade. Successes and failures are real and they need to be embraced before they find their proper place in your memory bank. Reminds me of a story . . .

My stepfather was a lovable loser. He was a gregarious bartender, bookie, amateur chef and bullshit artist all rolled into one. He went from job to job. He was in the habit of boldly predicting things that he claimed would happen and when they didn’t, which was most of the time, he quietly ignored his prediction. But on the rare occasion one of his pronouncements came true, he would turn to my mother in mixed company and say in his outside voice, “Didn’t I call that shot, Lil?”

You may have called a shot or two in your life too but you’ve also been shot down more than you care to admit. It’s not like you have to announce it to the whole world but you do have to admit it to yourself. It keeps the past from staying present and gives you the gift of acceptance – the key to balancing an up and down life.

All the best,

John

Give three reason why you are stuck. Give it some thought. Then list them.

Reason 1 ____________________________________

Reason 2 ____________________________________

Reason 3 ____________________________________

Now that you have them all in place, replace them with three other reasons.

Other Reason 1 ______________________________

Other Reason 2 ______________________________

Other Reason 3 ______________________________

Now I’d like you to engage your imagination and pretend that all those reasons have miraculously disappeared.

Here’s what you will notice: You’re still stuck.

Your reasons for being stuck are not the reason you are stuck; they are the justification for your “stuckness.” Notice how you want to argue for your reasons. Notice how wrong you want to make my assertion.

You now have another reason to justify your reasons and you’re still stuck in a pile of shit.

Here’s one of life’s secrets: You’re not going to reason yourself out of a smelly place.

Getting unstuck takes some sort of action. Something has to move besides your train of thought.

Coming up with another creative way to explain your stuck state won’t get you to the starting gate.

Notice that Chinese Philosopher, Lao Tzu didn’t say, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one reason.”

Modern day philosophers and singers/songwriters, Kenny Loggins and Michael Macdonald wrote it this way in the Doobie Brothers song, “What a Fool Believes“: “No wise man has the power to reason away.”

The next time you’re about to “reason away,” take a step. It’s the most reasonable thing to do.

All the best,

John

I’ve been playing around with the word “react” the past couple of days. I now think of it as two words “re” and “act.”

“Take Two” is a familiar term on the set of a film or video production. That means to re-act the scene.

Another part of my musing on the word “react” is this: Reactions come as quick as lightning. Think of the last time you were surprised by seeing a spider. “Eek!”

Your lizard brain popped out a reaction and you did the same thing you did the time before. That’s an unhyphenated reaction.

When we break the word in two, we get two separate words – “re” and “act.” Think of “re” as rewind. We rewind the video and are about to play the scene over again. “Act” means to take action.

What would happen if between “re” and “act” we took a little pause to consider our action. We then would have the option to play out the scene differently.

Rather than re-act the scene, we give it a new dimension by pausing. That’s what the hyphen represents – a pause in the action.

Now this probably won’t work with my spider example because the reaction is so instant, but what about most other situations where you get an opportunity to employ the dash? Do you have a very familiar, stale, repeating back and forth with someone – a boss, an employee, a parent, child, lover, friend or ex? You know where the conversation will go before it goes there. That’s the time for the dash.

Re-acting a scene takes you nowhere new. When you sense your reaction to a stimulus before you act, you have a dashing opportunity to move out of predictability and create a whole new scene.

The next time you get a chance for a second take, take the opportunity to use the dash and let Take Two work for you.

All the best,

John

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