You find beauty only if you focus on the here and now. Happy people find beauty in the little things. Finding beauty, that is one of the secrets to being happy. I say it’s a secret but this knowledge resides somewhere in our subconscious. We somehow overlook it in our pursuit of happiness.
I just want to be happy…Have you noticed how often we hear these words? People most often say it in the context of a failed relationship. This suggests that most people equate successful relationships with happiness. Well, what constitutes a successful relationship? you might ask. According to the many theories I’ve read on the subject, the main ingredient for a successful relationship is commitment.. that’s it!
We hold the key to our own happiness
I’m not saying that everything else that brought you together in the first place does not matter, of course, it does! Your love for each other, common interests, physical attraction, and shared goals, etc. do matter. These things are important but without the key ingredient, without commitment, a relationship is doomed. So we all hold the key to our own happiness within us, we only need to use it!
Happy people find beauty in little things, like the dewy petals of a wildflower, or the last rays of a sunset fading into the horizon. If we can be present in the moment and appreciate the beauty that is all around us, I believe we can all experience happiness. The challenge is being able to accept that it is not possible to experience happiness all of the time! There will be challenges – life is full of those! Loss of loved ones, ill-health, financial uncertainties, fear of the future, etc. The important thing is to accept that we live in an evolving world and we ourselves must learn to evolve as well.
Focus on the here and now
Learning how to evolve means learning how to manage fear and not resist change. Fear and stress can sabotage your happiness but most of the fear and stress we experience are born of changing circumstances. Changing circumstances threaten the familiar order of things resulting in worry and fear of the unknown. As we all know, the unknown is a universal fear trigger.
How can we deal with the fear of the unknown? We can simply focus on the here and now. In the absence of fear, it immediately becomes obvious that fearing the unknown is irrational. There is no way of knowing what a future outcome will be. As one of my good friends like to say “It could be good or it could be bad!” so getting worked up about something (which may actually have a favorable outcome) won’t change it in the least! The trick is to practice focusing on the here and now, and ignore everything else.
The outcome could be favorable
Of course, there are other ways of managing fear as Dr. Jeff Jarosinski explains in this YouTube video. He says you can trick your brain into processing fear differently. Watch the video and let me know what you think in the comments. I have never attempted to do it but I think I have mastered the art of focusing on the here and now. Whenever I begin to worry about a future outcome, I remind myself that the outcome could turn out to be favorable! I choose happiness by being present in the moment and basking in the beauty that surround me.
