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SPELL SUCCESS IN YOUR LIFE>
SPELL SUCCESS - HAPPINESS IS A HABIT
Spell SUCCESS E-Zine
by Peter Colwell © 2007
ISSUE 16
Welcome to the "Spell SUCCESS" e-newsletter, a publication
designed to give you insights and ideas for more effective
living. Thank you for being a subscriber and reader. Please
feel free to forward this newsletter to family, friends,
and colleagues who are interested in self-improvement!
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THOUGHT TO PONDER
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"The habit of being happy enables one to be freed, or
largely freed, from the domination of outward conditions."
- ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON
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As human beings, we are all creatures of habit. By sheer
repetition of thoughts, words, and deeds, we either rise to
great heights or sink to deep lows as a result of our
mental, emotional, and physical habits.
In the words of Og Mandino, a great twentieth-century
author and lecturer, "Good habits are the key to all
success. Bad habits are the unlocked door to failure."
One of the things we all seem to strive for, but many fall
short of attaining and maintaining, is the elusive quality
we call HAPPINESS. What makes us happy? How can we find
happiness? Why does happiness seem to come and go in our
lives? Why can’t happiness be here to stay?
I believe that happiness is a mental state of mind that can
be experienced consistently through our willingness and
determination to be happy. Happiness, in my opinion, is a
HABIT that can be ingrained in our personality and
consciousness through a deep, driving desire to be happy
and by making a commitment to change our thinking and
consciously adjusting our attitudes as often as necessary.
Did I say this would be easy? Especially if you (or someone
you know) is habitually pessimistic, worrisome, fearful, or
anxious? Changing your thinking and monitoring your thought
patterns is definitely a "lifestyle change." Like any
habit, it can be hard to break. But it will be worth the
effort!
People who consider themselves generally happy tend to live
longer, be healthier, have less marital and relationship
problems, and attract people into their lives who reinforce
their positive behavior and outlook.
In his famous book "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living"
which has sold over 6,000,000 copies to date, Dale Carnegie
shares true stories of people he interviewed who nearly
worried themselves to death. Fortunately, the majority of
the stories have good endings as a result of people being
able to "break the worry habit."
One such example was from a man who was in military college
in Blacksburg, VA and was known as "the worrying wreck from
Virginia Tech." This man worried so often and so severely
that there was a regular bed in the college infirmary
reserved for him. In the man’s own words "I worried for
fear I would be busted out of college for low grades. I had
failed to pass my examination in physics and other subjects
too. I worried about my health, about my excruciating
attacks of acute indigestion, about my insomnia. I worried
about financial matters. I felt bad because I couldn’t buy
things for my girlfriend or take her to dances as often as
I wanted to. I worried for fear she would marry one of the
other cadets. I was in a lather day and night over a dozen
intangible problems."
In desperation, this young man sought out one of his
professors for guidance. The professor told him "You ought
to sit down and face the facts. If you devoted half as much
time and energy to solving your problems as you do to
worrying about them, you wouldn’t have any worries.
Worrying is just a vicious habit you have learned."
The professor then gave the young man three rules to break
the worry habit:
1) Find out precisely what is the problem you are worrying
about.
2) Find out the cause of the problem.
3) Do something constructive at once about solving the
problem.
This advice helped the young cadet to analyze his problems,
be objective as possible, and to take positive action to
solving them, instead of being paralyzed by worry.
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"The sun will not be up as soon as I
to greet the fair adventure of tomorrow."
- WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
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Life is too short to put off happiness until we reach all
our goals, live all our dreams, or achieve the "perfect
conditions," whatever that may mean for you. As Dale
Carnegie once stated "Life, we learn too late, is in the
living, in the tissue of every day and hour." We should get
into the habit of putting our daily challenges to bed, and
waking up each day with a renewed sense of the
possibilities that lie ahead. This was the philosophy of
Harry S Truman, the 33rd President of the United States,
who was trailing in the polls on Election Night in 1948. No
one thought that Truman had a chance of beating his
opponent, not even his wife! With defeat all but certain,
Truman put his worries to bed, and woke up the next morning
to find out that the headlines stating "Dewey Defeats
Truman" were wrong! In fact, Truman had won the Presidency.
You never know what a new day will bring!
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"One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is
that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming
of some magical rose garden over the horizon – instead of
enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows
today."
- DALE CARNEGIE
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I recently heard about the passing of a fine woman who has
done so much for so many people in the speaking industry –
Dottie Walters of Glendora, California, who died on
Valentine’s Day at the age of 82. Dottie has mentored so
many aspiring young speakers over the years, and I was a
lucky recipient of her kindness, teaching, and sharing of
ideas to help me grow as a writer and speaker. I met Dottie
on three separate occasions in Washington, DC attending her
"Speak and Grow Rich" Seminars. It was after one of these
seminars that Dottie helped me coin the phrase for the
title of my first book "Spell SUCCESS in Your Life." I
remember asking her to sign a copy of her book for me and
telling her that I would like to be a professional speaker.
She said "Forget 'I would like'." Say: "I WILL be a
professional speaker!"
Dottie started out with nothing and went on to become a
world-class author, entrepreneur, innovator, speaker,
magazine publisher, and consultant to thousands of
businesspeople around the world. Hers is a story of
determination and never giving up. Dottie was famous for
quoting her poor, immigrant Scottish grandfather, who told
her when she was a small child: "If you are hurt, you may
have to lie down and bleed a wee bit, lassie. But you will
get up again!"
Dottie gave hope to so many people and encouraged them to
believe in themselves and their endless possibilities. She
wrote a poem that captures this essence, which I am
delighted to share with you.
"THE PEARL OF POTENTIALITY: Are You Ready to Catch It?"
By Dottie Walters (1925-2007)
The Dragon’s my Friend. He barks and he roars
At all thoughts of defeat or despair,
He is calling, "Get ready! Your Chance is here!
My PEARL is in the air!"
From the mists of time my Dragon has come,
Churning the darkest sea,
As he flings in the air great PEARLS of thought
From his limitless store. For me!
And he cries as he tosses his rain of PEARLS
"Take heart! Look up! Be free!"
The Chinese are wise. They know the PEARL’S name
"POTENTIALITY!"
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Happiness is a habit that can be achieved by consciously
adjusting our attitudes. We can overcome worry by living in
the moment and recognizing the "roses that are blooming
outside our windows today." Break the "worry habit" once
and for all by identifying your problems and doing
something constructive to solve them!
See you next time,
Peter
Peter Colwell helps organizations turn negatives into
POSITIVES! Peter is the author of Spell SUCCESS in Your
Life, a highly acclaimed motivational book, published in
Argentina, Romania, China, India, Thailand, Indonesia, and
South Korea. Peter offers professional keynote speeches,
seminars, and workshops to corporations, associations, and
nonprofit groups.
For more details about his book and speeches, visit
http://www.PeterColwell.com.
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