Reinventing Yourself

The Question – What Makes You Happy?

I think the whole concept of happiness, where it comes from, what makes you feel happy and so on is one of the most complex issues we all ask ourselves from time to time.

If you ask anyone the question–What makes you happy? –some will say it’s a result of personal success and achievement at work. Others will say it’s a result of having a healthy body and mind. Of course, these are true, yet when you observe people around you who appear to have it all – success, fame, wealth, beauty, etc., they’re often the unhappiest people on this planet in reality.

Struggles to Cope and Looking Within

For me, I remember growing up in Boston as a child moving into adolescence and early adulthood. Yes, like many young people, I had my own struggles to cope with, such as: feeling good about myself, feelings of self-worth, wondering where my life was going, and so on. No, I wasn’t negative or pessimistic, but if anything, I just remained neutral, and it was more a case of observing life! When I moved to Los Angeles in my early twenties, the city where everyone walks around in a perpetual state of happiness (or not!), it dawned on me that I needed to stop looking for happiness in the wrong places and do some work on myself for myself.

Reinvent Yourself – How to Do It?

So I want to share some of my readings and thoughts, for those of you who want to either reinvent yourselves or at least reinvent the concept and meaning of happiness.

In the Vedic and Buddhist traditions of ancient India, they believe that there are five causes linked to the feeling of unhappiness:

~ The feeling that you need other people’s approval to be happy.

~ The sense that you will be happy when you have … a bigger house, a promotion at work, those new shoes … and so on.

~ You can only be happy when everything is going perfectly in your life!

~ You’ll never be happy because of what happened in the past.

~ Nobody has taught me how to be happy.

Reinventing – Secure with Your Own Identity

I believe that when you stop looking for other people’s approval, and you become secure with your own identity, so much of that unhappiness that was associated with wanting or needing approval will just dissipate and disappear. Enlightenment comes when you know who you truly are when you’re comfortable in your own skin when you look in the mirror and just say “I like me!” And yes, for anyone reading this who doubts it can happen – it can!

If you’re not happy, then change! Reinvent yourself. Start off today with the intent to change something, no matter how small, at least start the process of change and reinvention. This is why I love writing these Soul Inspirations newsletters, as I hope that no matter how few of my readers actually do something as a result of reading this … that for some – it inspires and fosters a mindset of positive change.

John’s Lesson

Start thinking of your body and mind in a different way. Don’t think of them as separate entities with some sort of boundary between them, but think of them as one … as a single force.

Become more aware of your body for starters. After all, your body and the universe are a single combined field of energy, providing a source of limitless information and consciousness. When you stop and listen to your body and learn to consciously respond to it, it’s only then that you can start to tap into a place of infinite possibilities, to find peace, harmony, and joy. Your body is an amazing vessel for communication when you’re happy or when you’re unhappy, so don’t underestimate or ignore the signals your body is sending you. It knows. It’s constantly sending you signals!

Often unhappiness is a result of disharmony between mind, body, and spirit, so when you next meditate, try to tap into your deeper awareness, so you can better understand the messages your body is sending you. Once you do this, you’ll know what to do (or not do) so that you create a sense of harmony in mind, body and spirit.

Take time to appreciate and acknowledge what your body does for you. It has the capacity with all the intelligence that exists to play an instrument, to heal itself, to create new life and so much more. Equally, our bodies have an amazing capacity for creativity. We can learn new skills, paint, draw, dance or become a gold medal winning sportsman.

John’s Lesson in 3 Simple Activities

So for my lesson in this editing of Soul Inspirations, here are 3 simple activities to try.

1. Take 20 minutes of time alone with yourself. Don’t rush it, so pick a time when you know you’re not about to do something else. Sit in your favorite comfortable chair and just tell your body that it has your permission to do whatever it wants at this moment without any restrictions. This is your time with your body to heal itself, and getting to know your body better.

2. When you’re done, take a few minutes to write in your journal what you observed when you became more aware of your body. Was there something that made you feel uncomfortable? If so, what was it?

3. Try and describe them in your journal.

Finally, as you finish up, try and create an intent of how you plan to incorporate a renewed sense of body awareness into your everyday life. It’s like a body awareness check-up! Set your intent and see what happens.

Live a Soul-filled life!