Happiness is an inside job!

Want to be happier? I have good news and bad news. First, the bad news:
Research shows that approximately 33-50% of your level of happiness is hereditary. Your genes dictate your “happiness set point.”
Now, the good news. According to psychologists, 10% of your happiness is due to life circumstances and 40% is the result of your own choices and personal outlook: your career, your relationships, your friends, your activities, your level of health and fitness…
So even if you have a relatively low happiness set point, you still have significant control over how happy you feel. The key is to exercise that control by making choices and developing habits that make you happier.
Easier said than done?
Actually, no:
Surround yourself with positive people.
Like they say, we’re the average of the five people we spend the most time with. Spend time with negative people and your outlook will become more negative. Spend time with a chronic devil’s advocate and your attitude will go all to hell. .
Good friends encourage you, support you, and lift you up when you’re down. They see the best in you, and that helps you see the best in yourself. (That’s also true for our co-workers, and is why it's so important to have great colleagues at work. It's not just that we spend a lot of time with them, we essentially become them.
You can’t choose your family, but you can choose your friends. Choose people who make your life better – and happier.
See perfection as the enemy of happiness.
Your career doesn’t have to be perfect before you can be happy. Your marriage doesn’t have to be perfect before you can be happy. Your kids, your home, your car, your clothes… nothing has to be perfect.
And that’s a good thing because nothing can ever be perfect. Setting a bar you’ll never reach only ensures you’ll never be satisfied, fulfilled, or happy.
Instead think about what you already have. Think about what you’ve already accomplished. See where you are today not in terms of where you think you should be…. but as a great platform for achieving even more.
Then focus on doing well. Focus on doing great. Focus on excellence – not perfection, but excellence.
And know when to smell the roses – because you have a much bigger garden than you let yourself think.
Focus on now, not later.
“What if?” is like kryptonite to happiness. “What if I get fired? What if my business fails? What if something happens to my family? What if....”
“What if?” thinking is great if it results in a plan.
“What if?” thinking that only results in worry and stress and distraction is a waste of time.
If you can’t control tomorrow, don’t worry about tomorrow. Just worry about making today great, because the best way to be happier is to enjoy every moment as it comes.
Compare yourself to yourself, not to other people.
Comparisons are a zero-sum game you will always lose: no matter who you are, there will always be someone smarter, or richer, or more attractive, or more successful. Someone will always have “more.”
(But no one will have what you have.)
So stop comparing yourself to other people and start comparing yourself to yourself. Work to be a better version of you than you were last week, last month, and last year; that way when you look back you’ll love seeing how far you’ve come.
And you’ll feel a lot happier with, and about, yourself.
Do unto others.
“It is better to give than to receive” has a scientific basis: studies show providing social support can be more beneficial to the giver than the receiver.
Not only is helping a person in need gratifying, the act is also an explicit reminder of how comparatively fortunate we are… and that’s a wonderful reminder of how thankful we should be for what we already have.
You can’t control whether other people help you. But you can control whether you help other people – and that means you can control how happy you are, since giving always makes you feel happier.
Live your life.
The most common regret of people that only had a few months to live?
"I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me."
What other people think -- especially people who aren’t important in your life -- doesn't matter. What other people – especially people who aren’t important in your life – want you to do doesn't mater.
You have hopes. You have dreams. You have goals. Regardless of what other people might think or say, make the choices that support those hopes and dreams and goals.
Don’t look back and wish you’d done things differently. Decide what you want, decide how you want to live, decide what is best for you, your family, and the people you love… look forward and live your life in the way that supports what you truly want.
Have the courage to be who you are. You’ll be much happier now… and much happier later.

There is Life after Christmas

There is Life after Christmas. The holiday season is the time when many entrepreneurs dig the financial graves in which their projects will fall. Countless potential billionaires spend more than they earn
The financial decisions you make this holiday season will impact your investments in the coming year. Don't be deceived by the Holiday spending fever. Celebrate but do it sensibly knowing that there is life after the holidays. Don't just buy things because they're on sale. If you didn't plan for it simply don't buy it.
 Use that extra income from bonuses to make a head-start of the new year. Pay off your debts, pay tuition or rent in advance or save for that future project
"The wise man saves for the future but the foolish man spends whatever he gets." Proverbs 21:20.

Please, Just Introduce yourself!

 Networking is one of the most challenging skills you may have to learn in the world of business. It can be an awkward experience, having the attention of a group of strangers focused on you, and trying to make a good first impression.
It’s an important moment. The person opposite you might be someone who could make or break your career. If you make a good impression, he or she might be able to refer your next big client, or have the influence to help you land that next big contract or that lucrative job you so yearn for.
On the other hand, if you act like a zombie, you might alienate someone who might have been an otherwise important connection and relationship.
If you’d like to avoid looking like a jerk, avoid being this guy when introducing yourself:
•Name dropper. This person introduces themselves by saying who they know, who they’ve worked with, etc. I might not remember their name, but I’ll remember that they once dinner with the area Governor
•Digital Zombie. If you’re going to a networking event, or a business function of some kind, don’t be so absorbed in yourself and your cell phone that you’re not paying attention.
. Biz card waiter. A card is not an introduction. Just throwing your business card at a person, or worse, at as many people as possible at a networking event, is just about the worst kind of introduction you can make. If you hand one to me, I’m going to hand it to the nearest rubbish bin.
•Double-shot menu. Handing someone two copies of your business card to encourage the other person to send you a referral. It’s presumptuous unless they ask for an extra card. Its like taking 2 copies of the programme at a funeral service!!!
•Rambling man (or woman). As soon as you get to talk, you get over excited and start telling your life story. Or the story of how you got to the meeting. Or how you met your spouse. And forget to tell me, you know, who you are.
•The Historian. If I’m just meeting you, I don’t need to know the entire history of your business or career, all of your degrees and accolades, and your dog’s maiden name. Stick to the basics.
•Little-sissie handshake. It may be old fashioned, but I think a weak handshake is a turn-off when introducing yourself. Practice a firm (but not crushing) handshake to convey confidence.
•The Cannonball. Probably the opposite of the little-sissie is the cannonball — the guy who is so overly confident that he’ll marshal his way into any situation or conversation without being invited. If you want to join an ongoing conversation, wait to be acknowledged before you jump right in.
•How to introduce yourself in one simple step:
Instead of leading with what you do, lead with who you help. As in, “Hi, my name is Steve, and I help companies identify and make the best use of their key performance indicators and big data while avoiding obvious risks.”
Done. You know who I am, what I do, and more importantly, whether or not I can help you or someone you know.
What are your best tips for making a good introduction? OR, what are your least favorite ways people introduce themselves? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.