Toronto, 11.30am, Sunday, February 15 2009
Life is good. It’s a gorgeous, sunny day. I’ve just taken my two terrier/poodle mongrels for a walk. My wife made me a delicious brunch of cheddar-cheese omelette on freshly baked wholewheat bread washed down with a bold Starbucks blend. I’m about to attend a coaching session by an Apple Genius on how to produce a Hollywood quality iMovie. Then I’m going for a one hour swim at the Toronto Athletic Club. Then I’ll spend a couple hours reading John Steinbeck’s Winter Of Our Discontent in the company of a great South African Red. Then I’ll enjoy a dinner of cedar-wood-smoked trout with my family, followed by an award-winning German movie we rented for $3.95 at Blockbuster. It doesn’t get better than that. Whatever else is happening elsewhere in the world today, my day is as idyllic as any day of mine can be.
Together with all the people and canines who will share my day, I created it. I chose the activities, but they will make the activities real. I reached out to them, but they were ready to reciprocate. They designed their day to sync with mine. They made themselves, their facilities and their gifts available to me. Today is an extraordinary day. But so is tomorrow and the day after. Sunday may be more leisurely and relaxed, but on any given day, I will choose both my activities and my attitudes to make it a special day. All around me, there are people and facilities standing by to conspire with me to create happiness. I’m acutely aware of them. I’m grateful for them. Every one of them risked their wellbeing to give me mine. The folks at Apple took colossal risks to create their magic. The folks at the Toronto Athletic Club placed a 25 yard swimming pool on the 36th floor of a downtown skyscraper to give me my aquatic workout. Steinbeck risked the critics and won the Nobel Prize when he created Discontent. Every step of the way, I’m enjoying a pleasure because someone had the passion and commitment to produce remarkable things. And that’s truer today than ever before.
I’m creating my own happiness but I cannot create my own happiness on my own. It takes a village, a global village of people – alive or dead, known or unknown. I want to reciprocate by helping others create their own happiness. That’s why I’m writing this – it gives me pleasure and it helps me stretch my capacity. But I want to be the reason why other people are savouring their life at a higher level as well.
As tough as things are out there, out there is a pretty amazing place and it’s getting more amazing all the time. There are an abundance of resources and opportunities present to the people who are alert to their presence. In fact, they may even more abundant in these times because less people are looking for them. The opportunities haven’t diminished, people have. So protect yourself against personal diminishment. Nourish your appetite for exploration, experimentation and innovation. Take a chance by being a source of wonder and happiness for others.
Seriously, what could you do right now to make someone happy? And by the way, I’m not offering you this possibility because I’m Mother Theresa. There’s gold in lighting other up. They’ll reward you very well for your contribution. They’ll choose you over all others. They’ll talk about you and your fame shall make you even more desirable. So go do it. And tell me what you’re doing just as I’m doing with you right now.
And remember, no matter how bad your world gets, it’s still Nirvana compared to the alternative. It’s still full of miracles, marvels, delights, delicacies, teachers, angels and adventures. They’re in front of you right now. See them. And be seen.
What a remarkable and enlightened blog post Mike! I shall congratulate you for choosing to write about everything that can brings us joy now over how bad the economy will get in the future… Cheers to every day simplicity! Cheers to being more with less 🙂
Mike; I enjoyed reading your blog and thought I would respond to your request “what could you do right now to make someone happy?”
I’m trying to help the older worker who may be jobless and fearful by developing programs and initiatives that will change their lives and give them hope. By providing them with career options, career services, training and employment opportunities they will feel more optimistic about their future. This large community of people, all with years of experience and knowledge, has been so discriminated against and wrongly perceived that they wallow in self doubt, lack of self-esteem and confidence which is affecting their health, their family relationship and their financial future. Therefore I hope to be a catalyst to change the myths and false perceptions of their working profile and let them know that help and change for the better will come despite the negative attitudes they bear today.
I hope that what I am doing with the help and assistance of many others will bring happiness and reward to this community made up of executives, managers, and white and blue collar older workers. That they will realize life is worth living and that there is someone who wants to help them and mobilize others to assist and motivate them so that they need not fear about the future and what could happen to them without this assistance. We will build a community of older workers who, like family, will help one another in the darkest of days to rise up ,be strong , confident and self-sufficient and never feel alone again nor a burden to society.
Barry Witkin
50Plus Canada Works
Nice thoughts mate.
The global crisis is now a crisis of confidence — and it’s all in the mind.
Economists are starting to realise this, but how do you model ‘confidence’? Same as with brands; how do you measure the intangibles?”
Interesting times
Ricardo 🙂
Amazing words and amazing message. I can’t read it once. I should read it everyday because every time I read it ,there is a new insightful idea and guidance.
Congratulation Mike for understanding the universe and merging with it. You both are good friends. That’s why I feel there is harmony and cooperation between both of you.
I help the others by understanding my deep self and by considering each one around me is me. I learn from them and share with them what I learn. I promote peace within myself and with the others.
I plant good words in their hearts because I know that a good word is like a seed planted under the soil but its branches can reach the heaven.
All the best Mike.
Iman