The "One" Thing

The ONE thing. I am not sure exactly what that means but in the movie City Slickers “Curly” says the secret to life is just ONE thing. Sounds simple enough. Until he explains that the ONE thing is up to us to figure out. What my ONE thing is will be different than what yours is. How do we figure out what it is?

Before we brainstorm a little I want to say thank you to the people leaving comments and sharing ideas. They are great. In fact this blog is based on ideas from the comments. I can’t tell you how exciting that is for me. We actually have a brainstorming session going!

What exactly is the secret to being happy? Can you even define happiness? Lots of money? A big house? Nice cars? Nice clothes? A perfect sculpted body (Earned or store bought)? The right friends? Popularity? Fame? An impressive title at work? Something you hope to accomplish someday soon?

What about desires that less outwardly expressed? Like simplicity? A nice walk after work around the neighborhood holding hands with your soul-mate? A pond out in the back of the yard with a little waterfall that you listen to while you weed the garden you planted? A hobby that just gets you excited. A good book. Monday Night Football with a nice fire going (a personal favorite). How about laying in the dark talking to your soul-mate about nothing in particular…in only a whisper. (Ya I love that idea)

We often times let the world tell us how we should measure happiness. Its usually very wrong and only helps to make us more unhappy. And for goodness sake nobody should be reading romance novels and fantasizing about the life those people seem to have. The books are fiction. Make believe. Not reality or even close to it.

I think it is safe to say that happiness is a choice and not a goal. It is a result of the decisions we make on a daily basis. I cant remember the movie but I remember the actor saying I wake up each morning and decide I will be happy. Lets face it. 95% of the things in our life that make us unhappy are preventable or fixable. Inaction is the biggest reason we are not happy. Failure to recognize a problem and take honest steps toward a resolution.

The goal should be to find a way to be truly happy. Now. Not when we win the lotto or our ship comes in. Not when the sun and moon and stars are all in perfect alignment for us. Now. And let me just say right now that Dr. Dobson happiness is not good enough. If you are settling for that then I wish you all the best. This blog is not for you.

HEARTWORK: Examine your life and measure your happiness. Figure out what in the world is standing between you and happiness and take action. Wake up tomorrow and decide to smile. Decide to have a good positive attitude. Decide to recognize solutions and not focus on the problems.

And then share your ideas with us. Brainstorminglife@yahoo.com