SMILE

A smile is worth a thousand words.

I know, I know. You heard that is was a picture that is worth a thousand words. Well when I tweeted this though (posted at http://twitter.com/amabaie ), one of my followers replied “does this mean a picture of a smile is worth 2000 words?”

Cute. But arithmetic aside, that is not the point. A smile is a picture, but not just an ordinary picture you can snap with a camera. A smile says so many things.

It says, “I’m happy”.

It says “You’re OK”.

It says “I like you”.

It says “Don’t worry”.

It says….well, I’m not going to let this post go on for 1000 words. A smile can mean almost anything, but most of all it is an invitation to explore its meaningWhy not hop on over to Twitter and tell me what else you think a smile says? Just type in @amabaie and say your piece.

Taken from today’s Daily Dose of Happiness

From yesterday’s Daily Dose of Happiness:

TIME

They say that time is money, but it’s not. Time is everything.

No matter what you are doing, you are spending time. You can’t slow down or speed up the pace of the time you spend. All you can do is increase or decrease the value of what you get for that time.  And once you have spent the time, you cannot go back and retrieve it.  Time is a one-way street, and all the flowers you miss along the way are history – memories if you noticed them and missed opportunities if your eyes were shut.

If you are spending a lot of your time in drudgery work or watching a TV or computer screen, maybe you could do something to increase the value of the time you are spending. Perhaps you would like to spend more time with people, more time playing sports, more time philosophizing…whatever you enjoy doing, whatever fulfills you, that’s how you should spend your time. Because whatever you are doing, you are spending it, and even where there is a money-back guarantee, there is no time-back option.

Are you too old? Well, that depends…

Are you too old to jump? Are you too old to skip? Are you too old to laugh? Are you too old to sing and dance?

Interesting…what would you think if you saw a grown man or woman skipping down the street? Would you scoff that he/she should know better? Would you wish you could to that, too? Would you do that, too? In fact, would that person be you?

Somewhere along the way, we have been told that a grown-up is supposed to act a certain way, and that acting like a child is inappropriate. perhaps during Her Majesty’s coronation ceremony, it might be inappropriate to skip along, but that is a function of occasion more than of age. You are never too old to feel carefree and act just the way you feel.

As for that person skipping down the street…well, occasionally that would be me, so please don’t scoff, because I don’t want to know better.

I am old enough to know that I should eat my vegetables and that shouting in a confined place will disturb other people.  And I am old enough to do the right thing (like actually eating the vegetables and keeping my mouth closed in such situations).  As for jumping, skipping, laughing, singing (off-key, sorry) and dancing… I never want to be too old!

I received an email from Jonathan Cunningham of Let’s Reflect, a social networking website for self help and personal growth.  I was intrigued by this, so I asked for more explanation.  I can’t tell it any better than he does, so here it is in his own words…

To try and sum everything up in as few words as possible….all members have their own blog and thread(forum) connected to their Profile page. The thread provides an area to communicate with your friends and guest. The blog is great for keeping the community updated on your progress…or whatever you want to talk about on your soap box. 😉

(Both the blog and thread are located on the orange toolbar of your Profile page)

There is also a community forum for the website where members go to introduce themselves, talk about current events, or there is a “general” section where they can talk about anything.

My intent with the threads, blogs, and Profile page’s is to make great content sustainable.

Another cool thing is if you come across a great “Reflections” page, you can give it a “Thumbs UP” or “Favorite” it. This allows Users to gain status. When you favorite someone, their avatar is added to a frame on your Profile page titled “Favorite Reflectors”. Basically this section provides quick access to all your friends and other inspirational Reflectors that you want to follow.

(These are located on the orange toolbar of you profile page as well)

There is also a great search function built into the website. You have the option to search by…

1. Location

2. User Name

3. or Keywords

I really like the key words search. You can pin key words to your Profile page so that like minded Reflectors can find you. For instance, these are some of mine…parenting, leadership, success, marriage, sports, coaching…etc

Another cool thing is that you can completely customize/personalize your Profile page. You pick a cool avatar, set a great background image, and select whatever font color you want. It gives us a peak into your personality. 😉

If you decide to join and participate, I would be interested in hearing about your experienced.  Feel free to bookmark this post and return in 3 – 6 – 9 or however many months you wish to report on if/how Let’s reflect has helped you.

Just a quick blog note today to let you know that I am quoted in the new Words to Help You Be Happy in All the Ways That Matter Most book, by Blue Mountain Arts.

This is a quotations book, and I am joined by a number of people you have probably heard of, such as Mary Lou Retton, Victor Hug and Suzanne Somers, as well as fresh, new voices that you have never heard of before (as I imagine I am to most readers of this book).  You can find my quote on page 50 (actually, it is most of page 50).

As you can see, Amazon.com does not yet even have a cover image of the book, so you can be one of the first to pick up a copy.  (The copies do already exist – I am staring at one right now on my desk.)

This handy little book makes a great gift.  I am grateful for having been included.

“Short people got…no reason.  Short people got…no reason.  Short people got…no reason to live.”

Remember that old Randy Newman song?  Good thing I don’t always pay attention to the lyrics.  And I think this diminutive giant will also ignore the finding of a new Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index study.

The folks at Gallup have come up with data showing that below average height men are angrier, more irritable and more stressed than average.  On the other hand, they found that taller guys feel more happiness and enjoyment in their lives.

Well they didn’t survey me!

Here is a little something the folks at Gallup have to say about height and money:

“Alternatively, each additional inch of height has the same effect on reported life satisfaction as a four percent increase in family income.”

Since we know that money can’t buy happiness for most people, although it does alleviate frustrations and stress for those who are well-below the poverty line, does this mean that a really short person who gains an inch (high heels, anyone?) gets happier, but a taller person would not benefit from growing?

Probably.  But Gallup doesn’t say.  (Why don’t they ask the really interesting questions?)

What Gallup does say is that taller people make more money than short people  (NEWSFLASH: High ROI from high heels!), so could that explain why they are happier?

“People with more education have higher income and higher status jobs, and they earn more money. Money, in turn, is a powerful predictor of life satisfaction.”

Gee, Gallup.  Now my education and income aren’t good enough for you either?

Ladies, the news is a little less grim for you, perhaps because you are not expected to be as tall as I am, so at least you have an excuse.  But taller women still get all the good stuff, education, status, income, just with slightly less of a complex if you aren’t named America’s richest man this year.

Read into the report what you want, but I’m not paying attention.  I can make my own happiness.  And you can too!

Lloyd Garver of the Norwich Bulletin is obviously not a big fan of happiness books, but at least he refers to mine as… “Some of these popular happy books include, ‘Climb your Stairway to Heaven: The 9 Habits of Maximum Happiness’“.

The problem with Mr. Garver is probably not so much his grumpiness, but his poor sense of direction.  See what else he says, “The reason you can’t find the kind of book you’re looking for is that all the self-help books about how to be happy fill up the shelves. Ironically, this makes some of us quite unhappy.”

Fortunately for us and for the sake of clarity, he does specify what kind of book you’re looking for.  A real book.  Hey, those are his words, not mine.

If books about happiness and self-help are not what he is looking for, why is he looking in the self-help section?  I have to assume he is simply lost, because obviously he won’t find any real books there.  Either that, or he is a very grumpy man with a great sense of theatrics (not to mention irony).  And nothing makes a grumpy person grumpier than a happy person saying to him, “Smile!”  (Yes, grumpy people really, really hate happy photographers!)

If the bookstores would kindly provide visitors with maps when they enter the store, people who don’t want to be happy can avoid accidentally finding themselves surrounded by all those threatening smiley faces.  And they can get on with the business of finding “real books”, which apparently bookstores don’t seem to stock anymore.

That oughta solve the problem.

Hmm…I wonder what he would think of a happiness blog.  Would you call this a “real” blog?