Give Myself A Kick In The Ass

I am tired of this depression shit, and decided to give myself a kick in the ass and get things moving the right direction. So I put on some music this morning to get me going, I started with Les McCann and Eddie Harris doing "Compared To What". This is a jazz/funk classic from the sixties and it COOKS! I went from there to The Subdudes, a party band from New Orleans. I was moving and grooving before I even left for work.

At work, I have a killer headache, and coffee is tearing up my stress worn stomach, so I'm drinking tea and feeling better. Once this week is over, things will be MUCH better. But I'm still not letting that get me down, I am MAKING it a good day. In honor of that, here's an article I wrote for my company newsletter a few years ago:

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Are you one of the world’s luckiest people? I am. For the last half of my 30 plus year working life, I have been able to earn a living doing things I really enjoy. I made a career change a few years ago, and joined a large telemarketing company after having sold a business I enjoyed running. I am now part of their IS team, and am, once again, utterly and completely happy. Things move so quickly here, you have the opportunity to work on new things every day. Programs go up and come down, a program you write today can be in production tomorrow. Talk about instant gratification! Fantastic management, great co-workers – it’s a dream job. Am I satisfied? Heck no. There’s more challenges and even greater satisfaction over that next bump in the road…

I’ve talked to many people out there unhappy because their lives don’t fit their expectations or 'scripts'. They feel the best path to happiness is to change their scripts to change their lives. Good advice for some, perhaps, but not necessary for most. You see, having been there on multiple occasions, I have come to believe that HAPPINESS IS A CHOICE. It is usually not a new career, a new position, a new spouse, a material object. IT IS A FRAME OF MIND! It took the first half of my working life, including several job and career changes to discover this. The man who gave me my first job at age 16, a successful entrepreneur who has since passed on, used to be fond of telling people 'Make it a good day.' Not 'have a good day', but 'Make it a good day.' It IS a choice. You can choose to be unhappy about things such as workloads, clients, co-workers, income, or a host of other things, but I choose to make every day a good day. I truly love what I do, and know the rewards will be there in the end, provided I continue to learn and improve myself.

It starts by being positive. Look forward to going to work. Maybe you need to look forward to small things to begin with – getting there early so you can enjoy that first cup of coffee and e-mail a friend. Lunch with a co-worker. The music you listen to while you work. Find those 'little' things that you enjoy, and build on them. Avoid, at all costs, negative people. A single negative person can poison the whole atmosphere of an office. Strive for perfection. The sense of accomplishment you get from doing your job well puts you on the path to happiness. Always try to improve yourself. Through additional education, reading, practice. If you are improving, your attitude can’t help but be better!

It’s a cliche, but the rest of your life really does start today.

Make it a good day.