25 Things I Know About Life, Love, and Happiness

                                         

I often get asked from some of my friends what the key is. So today, on my 23th birthday, I’d like to percentage 25 secrets of my personal: matters that I’ve found out about existence, love, and happiness. 

Right here we move: 

1 : Politics are an exceedingly bad suck of your power.  

Don’t get me wrong — politics can be colourful and thrilling, in particular when things are going well for your selected candidate. However immersing your self in politics means immersing your self in  consistent stress and negativity. I used to consume each morsel of news in  each most important election — every editorial, every analysis of each  microgaffe. Today, I examine sufficient to stay informed and leave it at that.  I’m no  longer mired inside the muck, and my strain level has long past considerably  down. 

2 : Perfection doesn’t exist.  Stop searching out it.  

Whether  it’s a task, a place to live, a romantic accomplice, or some thing else  absolutely, there are continually change-offs. No longer cute little alternate-offs.   Sizable change-offs which you care about. Even the Chiang Mai cheerleaders  understand that as lots as they adore their city, they have to deal with unhealthy clouds of smog, smoke and dirt every winter. Lifestyles is a protracted act of compromise, and in case you maintain seeking out perfection, you’ll by no means be able to settle. 

3 : It’s now not your job to make every body happy.  

There  are plenty of folks who surely enjoy being depressing, even though they’d  in no way say so themselves.  Nothing which you say or do can convince them  otherwise.  Reduce your losses and pass. 

4 : select to spend your time with folks who lift you up.   

This one might look like a no brainer, but don’t all of us have buddies  who power us crazy in myriad approaches?  It would appear less complicated to preserve  stronger relationships with those with whom you proportion a history, or who  had been part of your institution for longer, however a whole lot of these  relationships can be emotionally draining. I’m not announcing cut them off completely — just make sure you’re  spending the majority of a while with those who make you smile, chuckle,  and sense desirable about yourself.

 5 : Having a college degree does not mean that you need to work in a job that requires a college degree. Growing up in a town where COLLEGE-CAREER-SUCCESS! is hammered into your head from a young age, I used to feel that giving up a career for a job “anyone could do” would be a colossal mistake, as well as an embarrassment.

Not anymore.  I have friends who have left the corporate world to become yoga instructors, personal trainers, dive instructors, photographers.  They love their jobs, they make good money, and they’ve finally found work that fulfills them.

6 : Being a good listener is something that takes both time and effort.  

This is a quality that you should take time to hone.  Concentrate on listening to what someone has to say.  Resist the urge to jump in early and interrupt, or add empty affirmation, or one-up with something that happened to you.  Listen, think, respond.

7 : Be kind — always.  When you’re tired and stressed and just trying to get through doing your errands when someone approaches you doing something that annoys you to no end — fight the urge to be rude, to make a sarcastic comment, to do anything that proves, in your own little mind, that you are somehow superior to everyone else around you.

That’s a strong urge to fight, but you have to.  Kindness begets kindness.  Kindness opens doors.  Kindness makes you a better person.

8 : The easiest way to be interesting is to read contemporary nonfiction.  

There are fascinating books about food, about religion, about cheap fashion, even about crazy subjects like cadavers.  You’ll always have something interesting to talk about — far more than what you can get on TV.

9 : Make peace early and often.  

Life isn’t fair.   You’re not going to do a fraction of the things you want to achieve.   Undeserving people will reach astronomical levels of success; their  more-deserving counterparts will toil. And in most cases there’s nothing  you can do about it. Make peace with these facts, and remind yourself of them frequently.  You’ll save yourself a lot of mental anguish. 

10 : Entrepreneurship today is easier than it’s ever been before.   

Whether you’re a crafter, a writer, a reseller of items, or a gamer of  systems, the internet has made it easy to operate a small business on a  global scale.  If you are ready to work hard, you can make it happen.   It’s an American Dream for the digital age. So what’s stopping you? 

11 : No matter how easily you think you’ll be able to spot  one, it isn’t easy to identify a relationship on its way to being  abusive.  

We always define abusive relationships in their most  stereotypical form: a man hitting a woman, a man yelling insults at a  woman. It’s a lot harder to discern a partner who slowly isolates you from  your friends, or manipulates you emotionally, or makes you feel  shameful.  Movies like Twilight that glorify abusive relationships to a malleable teen audience aren’t doing the world any favors, either. Pay attention to your intuition.  If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t right. 

12 : Trying to convince extremists is a waste of time.  

Sure,  you may be able to brilliantly argue your point until the end of time,  but realize that that’s all you’re getting out of it — a won argument  and possibly an alienated relationship. Just don’t get caught up in the myth that if you argue well enough,  you’ll change someone’s mind.  That doesn’t work with extremists. 

13 : Discount site emails will eat your wallet alive.  

In the past few years, several major discount sites have popped up: Groupon and LivingSocial for experiences; RueLaLa, HauteLook, and Gilt Groupe for fashion; Jetsetter for  luxury travel.  These sites warp your thinking by making you think that  80% off Gucci shades is an unbelievable deal, when in reality you’ve  just spent $120 for a pair of orange striped sunglasses. Sometimes, these sites can be very good — like when there’s a major  discount on something you were planning to buy in the next few months.   They can also be good for unique birthday gifts. That said, I unsubscribed to all these emails and I don’t miss any of them. 

14 : Only you are the person who can change your life.   

If you’re happy, that’s fine.  That’s great.  But if you’re unhappy  and want to make a change, nothing is going to happen until you make it  happen. Stop waiting for the perfect career opportunity or romantic  partner to fall into your lap, or for the right person to emulate to  appear on your radar.  Go after your own dreams. 

15 : Accountability is a beautiful thing.  Own your failures.  Not dramatically.  Not with an ulterior motive. Just own them. 

16 : Solitude isn’t a state of failure.  The amount  of hostility that single people face in our society is absolutely  ridiculous.  Choosing to be single and without kids does not mean that a  person isn’t good with people or has some degree of mental problems.   Am I being overdramatic?  Believe me, this is warranted. Some of the happiest people I know are single without kids — in part because they never settled for someone else’s expectations. 

17 : There is an art form to making a formal complaint.  

If  you’re having issues with a company, know when to complain (after  you’ve calmed down), who to approach (a supervisor or someone with  similar power), what to do (describe the situation as you saw it without  speculation) how to act (polite and respectful), and what, if anything,  you want in compensation from the business. Most importantly, resist the urge to exaggerate.  If a situation warrants complaint, you don’t need to exaggerate. You’d be surprised at how many people think that a complaint is best  lodged with red-faced screaming.  That’s an excellent way to get people  to not take you seriously. 

18 : The American diet is incredibly unhealthy.  

I’m  not just talking about fast food.  Our portions are out of control.  We  eat far too much meat, dairy, carbs, and sugar.  So many “normal foods”  are overprocessed.  Even when you grow up eating healthier than most (I  didn’t have beef until I was around 8!), it’s still an enormous contrast  to most of the world. Consider eating differently — smaller plates, more meat-free dishes,  fewer processed foods.  You’ll be surprised at how good it makes you  feel! 

19 : Magnanimity is an incredibly overlooked quality.  Rise about negativity by being generous in success and generous in defeat. 

20 : Don’t sweat the small stuff.  99.9% of the stuff is small.  If it doesn’t involve death or serious injury or financial ruin, it’s small stuff.  Let it go, let it go, let it go. 

21 : Your photos deserve to be treated like the treasures they are.  

Back them up online — every photo you take in its original format, even the bad ones, plus the edited final products. SmugMug is a great place to do this.  Buy a quality camera and take the time to edit your photos. Trust me — looking back, you’ll be glad you protected your photos. 

22 : It’s not a competition.  Really, it’s not.  

It’s  so easy to drive yourself into negativity while racking your brain,  trying to figure out how to either one-up or tear down the person next  to you.  Let it go, smile, and say, “That’s great.  I’m happy for you.” 

23 : Splurge on experiences, not possessions.  

Several  years down the line, you may not remember a handbag or pair of shoes  that you got for your 23rd birthday — but you’ll definitely remember the  day you spent zip-lining, or a sushi-making lesson, or a weekend  getaway to a place you’ve never been. That said… 

24 : Having stuff can actually be nice.  

There’s a  lot of backlash against possessions amongst long-term travelers, many of  whom describe the newfound freedom from “stuff” as the ultimate  revelation.  I know I enjoyed living out of a backpack. But the truth is that having stuff can be nice.  Not endless  piles of things you don’t need, but a few standouts: a MacBook Air, a  nice pair of sunglasses, a fabulous dress that always looks great on  you. 

 25 : Higher education doesn’t always pay off.  

That’s something I never thought I’d say, especially after having If you don’t go to college, you’ll be flipping burgers for the rest of your life! drilled into my head from the age of 5.  I’m not exaggerating. And today, many of my college graduate friends have been unemployed  for a long time.  Many more are underemployed.  And lots more are in  debt up to their eyeballs, owing upwards of $1,000 each month. Higher education isn’t the ticket to guaranteed success that it once  was.  So many people I know, both college grads and not, have found  their success as online entrepreneurs — either teaching themselves from  scratch or from free and cheap resources available online. Don’t get me wrong — higher education is NEVER a waste of time, and  it can lead you down a path to making smart decisions about business and  life.  But sometimes, it’s a waste of money.  Spend wisely.

Sorry for my bad english because I live in korea
- kimdahae

#love #loveyourself