10 PIECES OF PRACTICAL ADVICE

Thomas Jefferson.

  1. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

  2. Never trouble another for what you can do for yourself.

  3. Never spend your money before you have earned it.

  4. Never buy what you don’t want, because it is cheap; it will be dear to you.

  5. Pride costs us more than hunger, thirst, and cold.

  6. Never repent of having eaten too little.

  7. Nothing is troublesome that we do willingly.

  8. Don't let the evils, which have never happened, cost you pain.

  9. Take things always by their smooth handle.

  10. When angry, count to ten before you speak; if very angry, count to one hundred. Use all of this advice when you feel gloomy or sad or when something worries you. Try to self-motivate yourself…

IF YOU WANT TO BE HAPPY – BE HAPPY!

Virginia Briar, American journalist

It turns out that happiness is a habitual human condition, so it is said by poets and philosophers. The most important thing to avoid is the saying Some day it will get better’. When may I ask? Sometimes people think that life will certainly change for the better. People’s lives are a succession of milestones to be reached (getting a new position at work, reaching twenty five years of age, finding real love etc). If you have chosen such a path to happiness, then you will most certainly be disappointed! This is because happiness doesn’t follow a timetable! Waiting for a suitable moment to finally feel happy you risk waiting forever at the station for the rest of your life. The happiness train will pass you by! Everything could be so much easier: try to understand that You can MAKE yourself happy. Not someday! But right now! In addition, you can make this happiness state as habitual as any other human habit, i.e. through constant repetition. How exactly? Now we shall tell you!

  1. When bad thoughts and melancholy take over you, turn them away! Remember that there are situations that you cannot change. This is why we should react calmly to all that is happening around us.

  2. Make happiness your target! Try to be happy even in difficult situations. Remember, for example, what wonderful feelings overcame you when you saw beautiful sun-rises and sun-sets in some picturesque place. Or remember the relief and joy you experienced when you finished a large project or passed an exam. Or how happy you felt when you received an unexpected gift. You know what memories and thoughts affect You in a positive way.

  3. Get used to feeling happy! Let it become one of your most important exercises. Practice smiling more often. Smile to yourself and others. Let those around you see that you are a happy person. Every hour of every day, thank life for the thousand small pleasant things you come across on a daily basis. Start tomorrow by thanking fate that at least you have woken up!

  4. Try to make those around you happier. Offer your help, no matter how seemingly insignificant, to those you see in trouble. For example, show the tourist struggling with a map how to get where they want to go! Because of his happiness, you will feel happier. Forget the saying trouble doesn’t travel alone’. Remember another: Happiness is contagious’.

  5. Don’t forget the person who makes your life brighter and richer. Pay more attention to him!

  6. Try not to criticize the actions of other people. Take their conduct as a given’ and you will avoid negative emotions spoiling your life.

  7. Don’t try to become 100% lucky. It is better to enjoy many non-significant episodes, rather then wait for something tremendous.

  8. Conduct yourself as if you have achieved what you wanted to achieve!

  9. And most importantly: banish your envy forever. This is exactly what will spoil your life. Who and what is there to be envious of? You are amazing and you are very well.

Many people feel unhappy but this is because their expectations are totally unrealistic. This doesn’t mean that they are optimistic: the real optimist knows very well that happiness is purely relative. Don’t fool yourself. You cannot be happy all the time and in every situation. Only a fool is always happy!

It is important to understand that life is unfair’ to the same degree as it is fair’. Life is life. More often than not, life is not a chain of heroic acts, but rather a routine of everyday acts and obstacles, which (alas!) you must overcome. You must not view obstacles as something that You and only You must overcome. Similarly do not take offence at others’ indignation. Only then will you attain the habit of being happy!