Copyright 2002 Kevin Stacey. All rights reserved.

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In this issue:

1. Monthly Article: Pursuing Happiness.
2. About the author.
3. Privacy statement.
4. Subscription information.

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1. Pursuing Happiness.

"Happiness is not having what you want, it’s wanting what you have." -Jack Canfield.

The mindset of "I’ll be happy when ….." squelches our appreciation
for life and for our many blessings. Whenever we want to have something a certain way, in a way that we think will be better than it already is, we are engaged in a losing battle. Rather than being grateful for what we have, we are focused on what’s wrong with something and our need to fix it.

We become what we think about most of the time, and not only does whatever we dwell or focus on grow bigger in our experience, but we attract the experiences and people that correspond with our dominant thinking. When you are focused on how your life can be improved,
your mind is not in the present moment. When you’re not in the
present moment, your mind will continually think about how can
things be improved, and the corresponding feelings of stress and anxiety.

Think of the target of your mental focus as a scale. On the far-left hand side of this scale would be focusing and dwelling on what is right or what you’re grateful about regarding this moment, your current life circumstances or yourself in general. On the far right hand side would be a mental focus of wanting things to be different
or improved from how they actually are right now. If you are too far on the left-hand side, you may be overlooking genuine opportunities
to improve your life or you may be lacking in goals. If you are too far on the right-hand side, you will be a flaming perfectionist who finds something not quite right in everything and can never stop and sit still. For a healthy balance of living happily in the present moment tempered with motivating goals, we have to be somewhere in
the middle. I find many people are too far over on the right and succumbing to the mindset of "Ill be happy when…"

The problem with this mindset is that even if you got what you think you want, you wouldn’t be one bit more content, because the same mind-set that wants more now would want more later. We live in the most affluent culture the world has ever seen. Estimates say that although America has only 6 percent of the world’s population, we
use almost half of the world’s natural resources. It seems to me
that if more were actually better, we would live in the happiest,
most satisfied culture of all time. But we don’t. Not even close.
In fact, we live in one of the most dissatisfied cultures on record and this mindset has a lot to do with it.

People that don’t subscribe to the mindset of always wanting more
or seeing happiness only in the future are the real enlightened
ones. People that live the simplest lives, or lives that others may view as unsuccessful in a socioeconomic sense are, in many cases,
the happiest. The place called "enough" is a very powerful place to be. When you feel as though you have enough, you can just stop and enjoy. How much is enough for you? Learning to be satisfied doesn't mean you can't, don't or shouldn't ever want more than you have,
only that your happiness isn’t contingent on it.

The technique to overcome this mindset is to convince yourself that more isn't better and that the problem doesn't lie in what you are lacking, but in the longing for more. When you notice thoughts of
what would improve your life entering your mind, gently remind yourself that even if you got what you want the mindset will still
not be satisfied, and remind yourself of what you already have.

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2. Kevin Stacey is a professional speaker/trainer who works with organizations that want to enhance their bottom line by investing
in their most important resource, their people, through training programs that increase their effectiveness and eliminate negativity and self-induced problems. He develops and delivers captivating programs packed with practical information that seminar participants can immediately put to use. With an extensive background in clinical healthcare through both civilian and military settings and the
managed care industry, he has developed a variety of training
programs and presented to over 7,000 participants in 26 states and 3 nations. 
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Contact Information:
Kevin M. Stacey

Trainright, Inc.

43 Kosta St.

Worcester, MA 01607

1-800-603-7168

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Click below for the curriculum/program highlights of Kevin’s corporate training programs:

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3. PRIVACY STATEMENT: Your name or e-mail address will never be distributed, sold, traded, or rented, to anyone without your permission.

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© Copyright 2002 Kevin Stacey/TrainRight, Inc.

This newsletter and its content are proprietary products. All rights reserved. I encourage sharing this newsletter in whole if copyright and attribution are always included.