20 Rules to a Happy Life

This is a beautiful piece that I got from Leah’s blog. They are words to live by indeed.

1. LEAVE THE PAST BEHIND
To move ahead in the future, you must free yourself from the past. Clear up those cobwebs that bring nothing but gloom into your life. The bad experiences hurt, and heartaches and miseries. Step fresh into a “new life” each day by bringing with you only the best memories.

2. UNLOAD EXCESS BAGGAGE
As a rolling stone in life, you gather too much moss. You collect mountains of material possessions that take up too much of your space and time. Edit your belongings. Life will be so much easier if you travel light.

3. START WITH A CLEAN SLATE
It is better to start a painting on a clean canvass. Bathe your life and spruce up your act. Cleanse your soul and purify your spirit. And kick those bad habits away!

4. SHARPEN YOUR PENCILS
Be properly equipped. Your success depends on your keen sense on intuition, preparedness and dedicated work. Keep your aptitudes honed, willingness-ready and mind always sharp.

5. GET EXCITED
The excitement you get in life depends upon how excited you are to live it. Anticipate great things to come. Feel that you deserve them. Always expect nothing less than the very best!

6. HAVE A GREAT ATTITUDE
Your attitude affects your state of mind’s overall disposition. It determines how you act and react to people and situations. Have a great, new attitude to reach higher altitudes.

7. DWELL ON THE POSITIVE
There is nothing to be gained from wasting your time on negative things. Sift the good from the bad. See the blessings, not the miseries. Look at life through rose-colored glasses. Seek beauty, nobility and truth!

8. KNOW WHAT YOU WANT
If you don’t know what you want, you’ll never get it. You will never hit the target if you don’t know what and where it is. Know your goal and set your heart and eyes on it.

9. BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE
To succeed, you have to be in the right place. It is ridiculous to sell beachwear at the winter ski resort. Go to the right places. Get into the right circles. And be there in the right time!

10. DRESS UP FOR SUCCESS
What you project is what people see. You reveal your personality through your attire and the way you carry yourself. Dress up in clean, comfortable and proper clothes. You have only three seconds to make that crucial first impression!

11. GET OUTSIDE SUPPORT
You cannot fully succeed by doing it all alone. No man is an island and you cannot be educated enough to know it all. Employ the help of others. And strive to win their all-important trust and moral support!

12. GIVE IT TO GET IT
To get it, you must give it away. The most important things in life operate by the law of Cause and Effort. Love, happiness, understanding, compassion and even money — you must give them away first before you can receive them. Be aware that the law works on negative things, too, cause misery and it will strike back at you!

13. LIVE IN THE MOMENT
Yesterday is done; tomorrow is not yet come. You only have present, the very precious now. Make hay while there is day. And do it while you can!

14. PERSIST TILL YOU GET IT
A man died and found himself in front of St. Peter at the gates of heaven. He saw cars, appliances and wonderful things dumped on top of the clouds. He asked, “St. Peter, please tell me. What are those things?” St.Peter replied, “Those things were ordered by some people on earth but they hung up before we could ask where to have them delivered”. Don’t give up. Try and try until you succeed!

15. SHARE YOUR BOUNTIES
Life showers us with glorious gifts. The tallest and biggest castle in the world becomes a lonely prison if you have no one to share it with. Share your bounties; share your time. Show you care by doing your share!

16. HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR
Cry and you cry alone, laugh and the world laughs with you! Keep your sense of humor. Laugh and stay wonderfully sane. Most importantly, learn to laugh at your mistake!

17. KEEP YOUR CHILDLIKE WONDER
Keep the childlike wonder. Live with wide-eyed enthusiasm. Be in constant awe. Never permit yourself to be dull or jaded. Experience everything as if it was your first time to experience it.

18. FLEX YOUR BODY
Your body is the temple of your soul. Make it powerful and strong to weather any storm. Feed it well. Keep it neat, healthy and well maintained. Move the body and flex those muscles. Don’t be a couch potato, be alive and be on the go!

19. FEED YOUR MIND
A computer is only as good as the data you program into it. Update your knowledge. Delete bad past programming. Read, research and learn. Perform mental gymnastics. The most brilliant crown you can wear is an intelligent mind!

20. BELIEVE IN MAGIC
For anything to happen, you must believe that it will. A shadow of doubt is enough to prevent it from becoming true. You have to have faith in your heart and unwavering belief that God will provide what your heart desires. Believe in magic and with God’s blessings it will come true.

Hi! I'm Toni Tiu, and I've been blogging at at Wifely Steps since 2003. This started as a blog to help newly weds adjust to married life. It has evolved into a home and parenting blog. I write about things close to my heart -- good eats, good reads, family, marriage, and the little things that make everyday happy.