The Necessity of Nature

There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world. – Robert Louis Stevenson . . . because it has two important benefits: 1) you get to be happy 2) you serve as a living, breathing model of what to do….

We hear a lot about soft skills (emotional intelligence (EI) and the like). I’ve always been a bit bothered by the characterization of such vital skills as “soft.” With the exception of such things as pillows and the like, “soft” is a pejorative – especially for men. I’m here to shift that. From now on, let’s…

A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all. It’s seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future. – Howard Schultz People who really, truly, believe in luck think they don’t get any. People who are happy, productive and content know there’s no such thing as “luck.” Luck is preparedness…

We are made to persist. That’s how we find out who we are. – Tobias Wolff I often speak of being grateful for whatever comes your way. “Good” or “bad.” Everything is feedback. Everything is a lesson. Everything is a springboard. Whatever happens, use it. Use “it” to find out what you’re made of, what you…

Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for. – Epicurus I would tweak the above and say: instead of craving what you don’t have, set goals based on your best guess of what else you might want…

Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world. – Helen Keller With apologize to Ms. Keller, there are other grave threats to ability to anything wise in the world, self-deception chief among them. But feeling sorry for your self, for more than five…