The Grasshopper had his “4th of July” on over the weekend and offered this little firecracker: “Gusto is an artificial high.”

I was reminded of the Schlitz Beer commercials of the 60s where the tag line was, “Grab for all the gusto you can get.”

These commercials were illustrative of the presupposition that you didn’t have enough in your life and you had to reach outside yourself to get more – “Go for the gusto.”

The zest in life comes from within; yet we’ve been conditioned that it’s an outside/in process.

There are lots of exciting things people do for exhilaration: rides at an amusement park come to mind. But if you need to ride Space Mountain or drink a beer or energy drink to get your gusto every time, you haven’t yet found your internal fountain of fervor.

Do you constantly need something outside yourself to “jack you up”? If so, it’s time for a little “in-spection.”

Going inside means letting the trappings of the outside world to go away, just for a time, so you can experience the calm center of your existence. This serene place of peace is capable of producing more gusto than you’ll ever need. You’ll know you’re gathering your internal zest when you start to notice how comfortable you’re becoming in your own skin. This feeling of comfort doesn’t need an outside agent as a catalyst, only a visit inside.

Being comfortable with who you are lessens your susceptibility to the conditioning that you need something besides you to get your gusto.

Going after adventure is a fun thing to do, but if you’re doing it to generate gusto, your skin will forever feel uncomfortable on you.

All the best,

John