One of the common diseases in our time is pessimism. No matter young or old, people are only seeing the bad sides of life in all fields. They lost hope in life, God, luck, and worst of all, they lost hope in themselves. They surrender to sickness, they give up their dream of success, they stop fighting for their rights and they simply forget about any possibility of making things better.
Abraham Licoln said: “ people are just as happy as they make up their minds to be”, and I totally agree. Because the strong will works wonders. So the first step to take in the road of happiness is having a strong will to lead a happy life. And I believe we can all revive the will inside us and give it the green light to take control of our dreams and performances. Yet will alone isn’t enough for us to reach our goals, we also need to have hope and never give up even if we make mistakes. Let’s learn from the great Marie Curie and her determination when she said: “I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done.” Despite the mistakes you make, and the obstacles you face, the important thing is to move on, let nothing stop you from fulfilling your dreams. No matter how complicated the situation you’re put in is, there’s always something left to be done. With some thinking, with some focus, you’ll work things out. Just don’t give up, and don’t surrender to failure. Then again, will, determination and hope are not enough, you need to take care of those around you. Mark Twain suggests you should “keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” That doesn’t mean you should abandon all those who criticize you, no, but you have to distinguish between those who criticize positively, and those who are trying to destruct your confidence. You must know those who appreciate you, and those who underestimate you. Be selective, and if you had no choice of selecting those around you for any reason, then at least don’t let their words ruin your evaluation of your own self. Draw some limits and tell them to mind their own business and save their bad comments for themselves.
And to make things perfect, do your best to be optimistic. No matter how dark things may seem, know that there’s always a bright side to look at, only we have to find it. Being optimistic supports your confidence in yourself and opens more doors to your own interest, just as Winston Churchill once explained: “a pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” Being optimistic kills the fear of risk, but this doesn’t mean you should go on risking your life in the name of optimism, you have to be optimistic, realistic and rational at the same time.
And finally know that “being happy doesn’t mean everything is perfect. It means you have decided to look beyond imperfection”.