“Life is either a grand adventure or nothing at all.” ~Helen Keller
Overnight the buds of the trees began to sprout. Spring has finally arrived. Temperatures here are rising, vibrantly hued flowers are blooming and there is a fruity smell as I walk down the pavement of the 72nd street. Springtime brings with it a happy and cheerful feeling which rises in the pit of my stomach and the excitement of something good brews in my heart. With April Showers on the 22nd of April, I feel romance is in the air. If not for the unfinished work sitting at my desk I would have been hitting the road with Aaliyah and stealing a kiss or two while listening to her ceaseless and sensational stories from every part of her life blended with a love song filling in the silence in between.
Just last night I was ruminating over things that weren’t working for me. Aaliyah was right beside me looking my way with a painful longing in her heart, while I was staring at my mobile trying to fix meetings and appointments with people who do not really matter. Transitions can bring joy or steal them away from us. While mundane overwhelms us and seasons make us joyous, we attach our daily sip of happiness to something or the other and soon find ourselves parched as the external sources are ephemeral.
Can we instead just have the fountain of joy within us? Can we be independent of things, food, substance, people and situations to give us pleasure and happiness? Can we prioritize what really matters and drop the insignificant? What is our inner joy quotient?
Ebbing And Flowing Emotions!
Are you enmeshed by dysfunctional relationships or you simply choose to accept and work upon them while being grateful for the ones who are loving and supporting you consistently?
How we handle our emotions, handles us.
The Act Of Balancing!
Are you balancing self-care with caring for others or you are tripping the scale on either side?
Are you hoarding a lot of stuff to be happy or are you content as far as your wants and rewards balance each other off?
Align Your Dreams!
Do you wake up every day with the thought that something wonderful awaits you or do you drag yourself out of the bed? If the former, you surely love your work, if the latter, you need to align your dreams with who you are.
Harmony In The Giving And Receiving
Life is joyful and complete when we come full circles in terms of giving and receiving. Are you accepting with gratitude and giving with love and selflessness?
Mindfulness To Stay Healthy
Do you rest enough? Are you mindful about your body need or are you taking it for granted? Our happiness and confidence largely depends on how resilient and aware we are about our health. It only takes one tiny step to improve, treating yourself with love will heal yourself at all levels.
Time Is Of Essence
Do you often feel rushed? Do you go through extremities of being overly occupied to large periods of procrastination? Are your commitments failing and you often find yourself saving face? It is time for you to eliminate the unnecessary and prioritize the essentials.
Appreciation Vs Criticism
Do you often catch yourself cribbing? Appreciating yourself and people around you is important to being happy and content. Lately we have Administrative Professionals Day® and Administrative Professionals Week® coming up. These are widely observed in many workplaces in the United States and other countries around the world. Employers show their appreciation of the work carried out by administrative professionals. They have reported substantial increase in the quality of work thereafter.
Detachment
Joy can turn into bliss if we simply detach from the object that we depend upon. It is an internal state of your mind. Live each moment one hundred percent but remember nothing lasts forever. Hold on to the feeling and drop the object. Set yourself free.
Assess your joy quotient based on the above principal and stay happy always!
