Friday thoughts #13 - Real life has real happiness

Good morning to my super hero colleagues!

• A mojito in a city skyscraper bar
• Feet in the surf of hot white sands and cooled with a wave of clear water
• Sunsets
• Waterfalls
• Holding hands with someone attractive while running in a wheatfield​

Social media is throwing at us these snippets of lifestyles that many people aspire to. They can awaken desires but also spark jealousy in us, creating an unrealistic comparison that contributes to higher levels of stress, depression and anxiety than ever before. We look at them and automatically compare our total life picture with this small, square image on our devices. These images trend and are then forgotten in the chase for the next series of hearts & likes.

​So much of social media is based in a “Look where I am… Look what I have” attitude. But it’s a filter. A drastically enhanced fleeting moment, that is itself still a false representation of the situation.

• It might be a beautiful car: But what do the finances supporting it look like? How much worry is in making those payments?
• The queue for that scenery shot was an hour long due to the crowds and traffic at the waterfall. This paradise is really quite polluted.
• Here’s a photo of my dinner while I’m on a date… currently ignoring the person I am with. How do you think they feel right now?

 
Don’t be a fool: Don’t compare reality to fake 
Life isn’t about the exotic cocktails, beautiful scenery and sports cars… (don’t get me wrong… those moments are nice), but they are the rare exception, life is the 99% around that.

The real trick is to focus more on that 99%
How you treat each other every single day. Every interaction and act you repeated do every single day.
Some of it you might be thinking of as mundane, even boring… But if you can treat those mundane moments right, those little things you do every day, concentrate on them, and make them pristine and appreciated.
As a direct result you’ll have your life put together and live in happiness.

It’s these little things that are right in front of us… these little things that we do every day… they are not little! 
The bonus is that getting them right has a rippling effect. Seek out to recognize these small moments, and get more of them.

Real life has real happiness. Don’t get distracted or disillusioned by the theatrics of social media.

Small, smart changes: Practice appreciation and gratitude for the ‘little things’.
B