A reporter asked Hank Greenberg, former CEO of AIG, if a certain favorable outcome in a lawsuit had made him happy. Hank replied “What kind of a question! I don’t get happy or sad by the day.”
Wow! There is a lot of wisdom in that remark. To a large degree, we choose how happy we wish to be. Our world view, the internal dialogue we choose to entertain, the thoughts we dwell on, all these powerfully impact our moods and our emotions. To be happy is a choice, grounded in the knowledge that things turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out.
– Thoughts held in mind attract in kind,
– What we focus on expands,
– Look where you want to go,
– Smile and the whole world smiles with you.
“Learned Optimism” is a wonderful book on how to adopt a positive frame of mind that will energize you and lift up your spirits on a regular basis. Positivity will not solve all the problems of the world but it will solve a lot more than negativity and the process is a lot more pleasant with the camaraderie of happy smiles and laughter.
Closing Quotes:
“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” – Abraham Lincoln
“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.” – Andrew Carnegie
“If someone decides they’re not going to be happy, it’s not your problem. You don’t have to spend your time and energy trying to cheer up someone who has already decided to stay in a bad mood. Believe it or not, you can actually hurt people by playing into their self-pity.” – Joyce Meyer
As always, I share what I most want/need to learn. – Nathan S. Collier