Stop and Smell the Roses

Life is flying by so fast we forget to stop and smell the roses. 

Appreciation is a big part of happiness. However, who has time to appreciate?  There are so many negative things going on, I don't have time to stop and smell the roses.  My job is so busy and stressful, I don't have time to appreciate.  My spouse and kids are on me all the time and that leaves me no energy to stop and smell the roses.

Is that the way you feel? I know I did years ago.  How can you get the happiness you deserve if you are not willing to take the time to appreciate the things around you?  How can you get the happiness you deserve if you are not willing to take the time to appreciate the accomplishments you have achieved?  How can you get the happiness you deserve if you are not willing to take the time to appreciate the things about your job that you like?  How can you get the happiness you deserve if you are not willing to take the time to appreciate your family and friends who love you and want you to be happy?

The simple answer is you have to take the time.  You have to stop and smell the roses every day.  That's right - every day.  Appreciation creates positive energy - positive energy begets positive energy.  The more positive energy in your life the happier you will be.

Sooo, here are your every day exercises:

1. During the day we all see things that are interesting, creative, stimulating, fun, positive and beautiful.  However, we just pass them bye. 
   
   Starting today, take a step back and appreciate what you are seeing or hearing.  It might be for only a moment or an hour.  The amount of time is not important, it's the taking it in and appreciating it.
   
   What you see or hear is also not important.  It could be just the smile on a co-worker's face, the scenery on your way to work, The lunch you just had, an ad in the paper, a hug from the kids in the morning, or my blog (had to get a plug in there).  I assume you get the idea.
   
   What is important is that every day there is something to appreciate.  Sooo, stop and smell the roses.
2. When you get home from work, the first person you see (wife, friend, family, etc) say something positive.  No matter how bad the day was, say something positive.  It could be the roses you saw that day.  If the only thing that was good that day was your lunch, the first words out of your mouth is to tell them about the great ham sandwich.
   
   If they say something negative back to you, take one of these three choices.  One, ignore what they say and continue talking about something positive.  Two, say to them, hay, I know you had a bad day, but something good must have happened.  Tell me about that.  Three, leave and go on to the next person.
   
   This is YOU being the source of positive energy.  Everybody like people that are full of positive energy. Nobody "should" like people that are all about negative energy (however, some like to swallow in the negative).  Remember, positive energy begets positive energy - negative energy begets negative energy.
3. For a least a month, stay away from negative energy.  No reading negative news in the morning paper, no watching negative programming on the TV, stay away from negative friends and/or family, and no reading negative blogs (again, I just could not help myself promoting my positive blogs).
4. When you go to bed, lay on your pillow and before you fall asleep, think about at least two things you appreciate about your life, your family, your accomplishments, your job, or at least the money your job gives so you can have the good stuff you have.  I am sure you can come up with at least two things you appreciate about your current life and/or you prior life.

You have to do these exercises every day.  Don't skip a day. If you stay with it, I assure you will be happier than before you started these exercises.

Happier is a good thing.  Appreciation leads to happiness.  Sooo, STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES.