The way you look at your life at this moment can determine your future health and happiness.
How you habitually think has great bearing on your performance at school or work, your physical health, your emotions and your relationships.
If you see yourself as a powerless victim of life, you lose your confidence and sense of control. This leads to anxiety.
If all you focus on what is wrong in your life, you will no longer see what is good. This leads to depression.
An attitude more conducive to your wellbeing is gratitude.
Contrary to popular opinion, thankfulness is not a function of what you have or a luxury when life is good. Lasting and authentic happiness doesn’t come when everything is perfect because it never is or when it seems to be, it doesn’t stay that way. In an imperfect world, we can still be happy.
We say that pessimists see the cup as half empty and optimists see it half full. With the perspective of wanting, we see what we don’t have and we get what we expect – more of less and more wanting. Happiness is not in the cards with the half empty attitude.
Pessimists may think that optimists are deluded. The cup is really not half full, and in a sense they may be right. Water is not static just as neither our selves nor anything in life is unchanging.
People come in and out of our lives, love comes in many forms and the gifts we are given are gifts in trust; we hold them for a moment and pass them on. Everything is fleeting, flowing and in flux.
Gratitude allows us to appreciate what we have been given in the past – the good that we have experienced, the way we were loved and the lessons we have learned. It allows us to see and appreciate ourselves, others and our world just as they are at this moment. It can allow us to see and create a positive future, the realization of potential.
When you turn your problems into goals – reframing the negative into positive, you begin to create a more positive future. You are no longer a victim of chance. You empower yourself. You see golden opportunities and you seize them. You plant seeds for future happiness.
Dr. Davidicus Wong is a family physician. His Healthwise column appears regularly in this paper. You can read more about achieving your positive potential in health at davidicuswong.wordpress.com.
