Many of us believe happiness is a state of being we will arrive at when we are successful or deserving. We tell ourselves, “I’ll be happy when I have x amount of money,” or “I’ll be happy when my child graduates from college.” But happiness is not an outcome, an end result or an arrival point. Happiness is a skill.
The skill of happiness depends on being optimistic – and that can require hard work. In order to have optimism, a person has to change her thinking. Such change takes practice.
A professional basketball player has many special skills, such as the ability to jump high. With one split-second astronomical jump, the pro ball player can score and win the game. Most likely he or she was born with an athletic gift, but this was developed through practice. In fact, if you or I were to practice our more ordinary style of jumping, we too would improve, at our own rate.
Improvements in life are made through practice.
Just as you may or may not have the pro ball player’s natural gift of jumping high, you may or may not have the natural tendency to “look on the bright side.” If it’s your gift, practice it. If it isn’t your gift, through practice you too will gain in optimism.
Isn’t it worth it, to concentrate your efforts on positive thoughts? You won’t have to wait for some dollar amount or event or personal achievement. You’ll be creating happiness here and now.
