1. Learn to say “no” and stick to it. ‘No’ isn’t a ‘bad’ word and, in fact, it’s one you should use more frequently. It doesn’t mean you have to become self-absorbed or disagreeable, but you need to learn that for every question or request there are three answers; yes, no and I’ll think about it.
2. Start looking at the other side of the coin that’s been flipped. If it comes up ‘bad’ for you, look for the good thing that happened as a result. It may not make itself apparent immediately at first, but it’s there.
3. Sit back and do smell the roses. Do you realize that all of our senses can lead to our body’s feeling refreshed. Force yourself to stop, sit down and just engage in that game of looking for shapes, faces or whatever in the clouds in the sky. It’s very good use of your time because it allows you to cut the stress cycle and get a better perspective on things.
4. You should try to emulate Leonardo da Vinci who took all those 10-minute micro-sleeps and never went to sleep at night. Want another example? Okay, Thomas Edison didn’t sleep much DURING THE NIGHT, but he took naps all day long. So did Winston Church, John F. Kennedy and a host of other successful people. They knew the value of sleep and they seemed to benefit from it. You could do no less.
5. View hobbies and vacations as deposits you make to your “life saving” account. Vacations allow us prolonged periods of time to distress and hobbies give us time, at home, to get the equivalent of ‘naps’ from the cares of life. Doesn’t matter if it’s golf, quilting, miniature furniture, or any craft activity. Just do it.
6. Eat like there IS a tomorrow. Food is wonderful, but when you use it as a substitute for joy in your life, what are you really doing? You’re digging yourself into a deeper hole of loss of self-esteem and, probably, trying to fight depression or anxiety. We know certain foods have depression-fighting qualities, but they also have calories with them, so while you may bring one down, the scale will continually inch upward, to your displeasure.
7. Count your daily ‘laugh quotient.’ Stress builds up and attacks our immune system. It’s a well-known mind-body connection, so to counteract that attack, laughter is one of the best medicines and I suggest you make it your personal business to find some laughter in each and every day of your life.
8. Increase your appreciation of nonsense. Life doesn’t need to be deadly serious all the time. Learn to look for things that are just ‘nonsense’ and, if that means watching a Disney film, go to it.
9. Accept that a straight line isn’t always the best way to get somewhere in life. One of the things we need to learn is that, despite what our math teachers told us, a straight line may be the shortest distance between two objects, but it is not the best way to get to the things we want in life. Think about it.
10. Glory in your age and what you’ve learned in life. One thing I will agree with and that’s the fact that people, like fine wine, grows better with time. Don’t downgrade your age and what you’ve learned in life. They’re valuable lessons that you can share with younger people. Survival means success in life.
While there’s life, there’s hope for everyone, if they will choose to see and to use it.
