Tuesday, 25 August 2009

That Inner Smile makes the Glass seem Half Full

“The most attractive thing anyone can wear is a smile, something money can’t buy and shops don’t sell! Looking good comes as much from within, Confidence, happiness and joy, that inner beauty”.

Following on from a recent article of mine with the above as the opening statement, a smile is something money can’t buy. Positive attitude comes with a smile! Negative thoughts are infectious. Once you wear a long face, if affects all around you, It is very easy to slip into negative thinking. Optimists have failures too, but they tend to blame the failure on factors that are external to themselves, temporary and specific to this instance. For the negative person however, they claim it is their own fault, and it always happens to them. They take Murphy’s Law to heart, “if it can go wrong, it will”…They look on the glass as always half empty. There are also people who have learnt the behavior of negativity, people who “hide their light/talents under a bushel”. The great dinner was only “thrown together” etc. Don’t you just long for them to express joy, laughter and a smile even now and again. Take for example you join a group of friends who are having a great time and you walk in with a long face, what effect will this have on the group? On the contrary, if you walk in to find this group down in the dumps and you approach them with a smile, you automatically make things look up. A smile releases endorphins, which give you a natural high. Whilst reading this think of a person or a place you love. Feel that inner smile.

Like I mentioned last week once you walk with an air of self-confidence, automatically you will act as a magnet, other people will want to join you, and speak with you. The same goes for wearing that smile. Smiling and positive speak will draw people towards you subconsciously.

Much of our mood comes down to feeling in control of what happens in our life. This determines how we deal with the unpleasant things that befall everyone. Positive people identify the stressor and take a problem-solving approach to deal with it. Others adopt what has been termed “learnt helplessness”. They come to believe that it does’nt matter what they do. What happens is beyond their control.

One temptation that besets many of us is to take ourselves so seriously that we begin to attach great weight to unimportant gestures. Humour is a wonderful tool for shaping us back down to size. So let’s be grateful for the gift of true humour wherever we encounter it. It gives us strength to continue on. Laughter does not mean carelessness. Each of us must make our way through these serious times, carefully ordering our priorities and doing what we need to do to safeguard our spiritual growth.

We can make of our experiences what we choose. We can focus on the traffic snarls while travelling to work or we can smile because we have a job to go to and a car to carry us there!! We can be angry because the washing machine broke down, or grateful that we’ve been free for a while of the laundry hassle! Every experience offers us an opportunity to respond, and our response is always a reflection of our emotions. We choose to be angry, depressed or afraid. We can just as easily decide to be happy or confident. And the exciting realization for us is that we are free to choose whatever pleases us. Even though we’ve gotten mad for years over traffic jams it does’nt mean we can’t give up the anger. How liberating it will be to claim back control of our positive emotions, our attitudes. You can decide to allow your mind/your thoughts to control you or you control them and put them to work positively for you. Censor your thoughts and banish the negative ones. It takes effort but it can be done. You don’t have to go around with a foolish grin on your face, but do experiment with that inner smile, it works wonders!

Once we take control of our situation and decide to make our decisions it is surprising how our lives can change for the better. It does appear easier to wallow and procrastinate and while most proverbs have a few grains of truth, “procrastination is the thief of time”. Also, as mentioned above not taking control, procrastination can be the cause of misery and guilt at the same time. We all know those people who are always meaning to do something but never quite get around to it, and regularly we see that person in the mirror?!

In conclusion, there is magic in believing in our capabilities at the moment, believing in our future potential, believing that we are worthy human beings with a purpose for being alive. However, the chance is present every moment to realize new dreams, to progress to new heights, to switch whatever course we are presently traveling on. All it takes is a changed attitude, commitment to a new idea, and the accompanying belief in the idea’s potential.

Any idea held in our mind can become a reality.

Do you feel you could do with realizing your ideas? No more procrastination. Are you inclined to see the glass half empty but would like to view it half full? Call me now and we can take the route to your brighter reality together

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