Important rule : When Life Gets Crazy, You Don’t Follow. And life definitely does get a little bit crazy sometimes. Wouldn’t you agree? At times, it even goes down to pure insanity. Have you had your life turned into living hell?
Well, I had. Sometimes by our own foolishness, but sometimes we could only scream unfairness (although there’s always a great lesson to be learned in the end). Bless you, if your life has been smooth so far. But if you have had lemonades, sour grapes, or rotten eggs thrown all over at you by this thing called ‘life’, then hats off for your effort to stay afloat of all these madness.
What’s the one worse thing than having to juggle through all the problems and setbacks, as we keep on asking ourselves “Will this get better?“. I’ll tell you what’s worse. It’s having some motivational quotes appearing all over your social media telling you to “Dance in the Storm“, “It’s How You React To Situation That Matters” or “You Can Choose To Be Happy“. Or have some of your well-meaning friends stuffing positivity in your throat. I mean with all the problems that we are in, do we need all that stuff?? Seriously??
YES!!, Because When Life Gets Crazy, You MUST Stay Sane
And as I found out way much later, participating in the blame game, or wallowing in self-pity doesn’t help. In fact, it does nothing than to breed more negativity and it keeps the never-ending chaos in our life. It has to stop eventually and guess what. No one is going to stop all the chaos except us. Here’s what I do to put a stop to all those madness, I choose to accept positivity. I decided to be positive.
One fine day amidst all the doom and gloom, I forced myself to smile. And guess what happened? It triggered some emotional memory ( I do not really know if it’s the correct term). And I remembered what it is like to feel positive again. The smile spreads inward and eventually reaching the heart and the mind. And in the end, the smile is no longer forced, but a genuine one, drawing its abundance of positive energy from the heart.
Sounds unbelievable? Well, I would too if I have not experienced it myself.
And in that one moment, I felt light again. I know I’m not in denial, for I am still aware of all the problems (irreversible or not) that awaits me. For all the talk about Happiness Is Within Us, they forgot to let us know that there is a trick to bring it out. Smiling is the magic trick.
One good friend of mine told me it is possible to face all the problems with a happy heart and a smile on my face. I did not believe then. But now I do.
Smile At Life and Life Will Smile Back At You.
But you have to get the ball rolling first. You have to decide to be positive amidst all the problems you are in. And, worrying doesn’t change a thing. do they? You have to tell yourself “Yes, I have tons of problem, but guess what, I decided to be happy“.Remember, when life gets crazy, you don’t have to follow suit.
So, does my smile and being happy melts my problems away? NO. But it frees my mind from being overwhelmed by the problems. It is not the sun melting off the thunderstorms. It is like the sun moving above the thunderstorms.
Remember, you are not out of the bushes yet. And it is very important to keep the positive energy level up. When you are able to smile and have a positive mindset despite all the problems you are in, then it is the right time for motivational quotes or books to keep your momentum going.
One fantastic book on happiness, which I personally read and enjoyed when I was trying to keep my positive momentum going is Happiness Now, by Andrew Matthews. It points out simple things in life that we repeatedly do, and we are not aware that they are making us unhappy in the process. Remember, when life gets crazy, don’t follow suit.
What do you do to snap out of your negative spells when you have your life turned upside down? Share with me in the comments section below.
(My very first book of Andrew Matthews is Follow Your Heart, which I read almost 20 years back).
I must say i have an obsessive personality, I experience my emotions too intensely sometimes. I can’t say a simple smile helped me feel better, but i am with you on staying sane and keeping cool. What helped me on my journey is changing my thought pattern- any time i start feeling sadness i turn on something powerful, be it a motivational speaker I most resonate with or a spiritual leader or an empowering song or visualizing my trouble free future with all my dreams come true and know as a fact that all that is waiting for me.
Hi Irina,
Yes. Visualization can be very powerful to turn our mood around and infuse us with positive energy. It can spark of a momentum for us to take massive action. Thank you for sharing.
Kenny
To me, staying sane is just one way of putting it. I have been through a lot before, and I definitely agree that it’s important to be able smile from the inside out rather than forcing it as a social trend.
Sometimes I am pretty grateful that I went through a lot of emotional trauma, because it helped me think and learn more about myself throughout the process. It’s kind of like a roller coaster ride. You simply don’t know where you are being tossed and thrown.
To me, life is always unstable and incomprehensible, but then again, maybe that’s why life is fun. I can say that because there were times where I can accomplish something consistently over and over again just to find that extremely boring no matter how many praises I get. Life is an adventure. I think we should all enjoy it even if it doesn’t feel enjoyable at the moment.
Hi,
You definitely nail it when you state that we should enjoy it even if we don’t feel like doing it. Life is uncertain and impermanence. To hope for otherwise, to cling on is to bring suffering upon ourselves.
Thank you for reading and all the best to you.
Kenny.
Inspirational stuff you’ve got here. I definitely think that a lot of what seems to be awful and insurmountable just needs to be given a different perspective. I believe in the whole idea that if you can force a smile, you can make yourself happy, and that laughter is one of the best medicines. You also remind me of a movie I once saw where one guy asks another guy who is about to die, “You’re not worried?” The other guy says “Would it help?” I think that’s how a lot of life could be looked at. Great post. Thanks!
Hi Pete,
Yes, I heard a saying from a great Korean boxer “If the road is tough, goes down with a smile”. Worrying doesn’t fix the problem. On the other hand, facing it with a positive mind gave us a chance to overcome our problems. Thanks for reading.
Kenny
I love this. totally agree that life definitely gets crazy and I love your important rule. Sometimes you just feel yourself following the crazy without even knowing. very insightful tips. reading this brings a smile.
Renee,
Thank you for reading and glad I could brighten up your day.
Kenny.
Great stuff here i’ve had cancer twice and i’m only 21 i just had my jaw removed not to long ago and replaced with my fibula. The journey hasn’t been easy but i’m still here and reading your post just gave me the urge to keep on fighting.
Hi William,
I have full respect for you and what you’ve gone through. Your spirit would definitely inspire others to journey on in whatever they are going through. In fact, I too draw inspiration from your sharing.
Thanks.
Kenny
When life gets crazy smile! Smiling releases so many positive hormones in your brain and makes you feel a lot better. It also makes everyone else feel a lot better which make you feel a lot better! Its a big ‘feeling better’ circle! Very feel people smile these days – Sometimes we just gotta stop and just, Smile
Hi Matt,
I suppose good energy is contagious. Yes, let’s smile and spread the positivity around.
Kenny
Really like your inspiring post. It is true that a little act of kindness will give an emotional memory. Just like smiling, when you give seat to old people, others will tend to follow as the emotional memory goes on
Hi Reyner,
Thank you for your message of spreading the act of kindness. When we act in kindness, we inspire others. Thanks.
Kenny
Nice post promoting a positive attitude. I am one of those individuals who had to grow up fast and I was forced to learn the world quickly. I love it though. I’m constantly sought after for advice from friends and I’m always glad to give them my words of wisdom. I always say the cliches of ‘everything happens for a reason’ and ‘everything has a silver lining.’ I then tell my friends to find the aspects of their situations that they can learn and grow from. Life is full of lessons, some are just more unfortunate than others. Here’s to always learning!
Leigh,
I like your positive energy. I agree that everything happens for a reason. Until we figured out what life has been trying to teach us, we have to repeat the cycle again and again. Thank you for sharing your wisdom.
Kenny
I like your article. I’m thinking of buying the book you’re suggesting here.
In my case, what I do to get rid off harmful spells or a negative day is hearing music. I hear music to change my mood. I love Gregorian Chants and Classical Music. At least, that helps me a lot. Music is very relaxing 🙂
Hi Patricia,
Andrew Matthews wrote very good books on happiness. I’ve read a couple of them. But if you are one who get rid of your negative energy and stress with music, then perhaps you would like to check out my latest post here. Nothing but pure, deep, relaxing music. Thanks for reading.
Kenny
Hello Kenny,
I absolutely agree with you about a smile. It does your body good!
I have definitely been in that insane place and had to pull myself out. Sometimes things can get so bad that I cry but can’t pinpoint exactly the reason for the crying. Seems like it is just everything.
I have learned that praying is what brings me back to sanity. That is what works best for me because I have a strong faith.
Another thing I do is to be around my grand babies because they always put a smile on my face even as the tears as still flowing down my face. Babies always make people feel better for some reason. I think it’s because of their innocence and their happiness is infectious.
Thanks for sharing Kenny. I enjoyed your article.
Verna
Verna,
The little ones are often free from the burden and scar of life. But they are are good example of living in the present. We often forgot that happiness is reachable within us. The babies are whom we should learn from for that. I think you probably got your emotion overwhelmed and crying is just an automatic response for you.
Thanks for reading.
Kenny