Think Young (By Linda Hancock)

I usually smile when I am around young children but there isn't a bigger grin that when I am with my three-year old granddaughter, Nariya. We spent some time together this weekend and she reminded me of so many things in life that adults often forget:

1. Be curious - Talk about questions! "Grandma, how did you get here?" "Where did you get those cards?" "Do you have Paw Patrol?" Each answer was quickly followed with another one of her questions. She loves to learn and knows that asking questions is a great way to get information. No assumptions on her part. Just questions.
2. Share with others - Right in the middle of a project she would say "Just wait Grandma. I need to tell dad." Then she would run to her dad and share the new information she had gained. "Dad, Grandma came in her car." Or "Dad, Grandma has cards".
3. Relax - It was within the first couple of minutes of entering the office that I noticed she had kicked off her shoes and was enjoying life in sock feet. What a great example for all of us!
4. Try new things - It didn't take long until Nariya figured out that she could turn the lights off and on using a remote control even without coaching! I was surprised when I heard her dad knocking at the door. Nariya had figured out how to lock it! Adventure is her life fuel.
5. Adopt persistence - I am not sure how many times she asked her dad if she could PLEASE have the candy that I had given her. She was clearly told that she couldn't open it until after lunch but that didn't stop her from asking again.
6. Connect - This little one can quickly melt a heart with her practiced wink, quick hug and charming smile.
7. Plan ahead - When she was leaving, I thought Nariya would say "Bye" but instead she announced, "I'll come again" and then turned to her dad and asked, "Are we going for a Slurpee now?"

All of the above are lessons that each of us can learn if we are willing. As we age, it is easy to lose our curiosity and get stuck in a rut. Often, we state that we are too busy to share information or enjoy time with others. Our conversations can be self-centered and lack intimacy.

The "shoulds", "have to" and "musts" of life can steal opportunities to relax and connect with others. Instead of kicking off our shoes and sharing a laugh, we run until we have blisters and work until we are exhausted.

And as for the future, we might give up rather than being persistent. We often don't have reasonable goals that stir our passion so there isn't any point in even trying to plan ahead.

This week I challenge you to think and act more like a small child. Soak up the moment. Ask good questions, relax, try something new, connect with others, set some goals, make plans and move forward in life with a healthy persistence!

I know you can do this - even a three-year-old can!

https://ezinearticles.com/?Think-Young&id=10263806

Don’t Be an Old Grump. Here Are 9 Ways to Think Young

Ideas to help you kick your old-man attitude to the curb

Youth is wasted on the young—or at least that’s what they say, but it would be a travesty if it were true. Youth is not only a time of life; it’s also a state of mind. Harvey Mackay, best-selling author and business speaker, says he stopped counting after his 39th birthday. He still considers himself young—and he intends to stay that way.

You can have a youthful outlook and attitude at an old age, or an old-fogey attitude at a young age. The choice is yours.

Want to stay young at heart and mind? Here are Mackay’s ideas to help you:

1. Keep only cheerful, positive friends.

You can pick your friends, and I like to choose those who are positive and those who challenge me. They make me feel good. They don’t drag me down or make me angry at the world. Negative peoplesee the difficulty in every opportunity, while positive people see the opportunity in every difficulty.

2. Keep learning.

I think Henry Ford put it best when he said, “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” I’ve always said that you should be in school all your life—never stop learning.

3. Enjoy the simple things.

Don’t forget to take time to enjoy the things that you like to do—go for a walk or to the movies, read a good book, watch a favorite TV show, spend time with your family. You have to have a good balance in life.

4. Laugh often.

Starting your day with a good laugh, or at least a big smile, is as beneficial to your health as it is to your mood. Scientific studies have concluded that laughter benefits the heart, lungs, stomach and other organs. It relaxes tensions, changes attitude and increases the body’s natural painkillers. Plus it has no harmful side effects.

5. Stay in shape.

Exercise is good for your mind as well as your body. Studies show that healthy employees have decreased absenteeism, better performance and improved morale. I’ve always felt that a healthy workforce is a productive workforce.

The human body is the only machine that wears out faster if it is not used. Cherish your health. If you’re healthy, do what you can to preserve it. If your health is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

6. Be happy.

You are responsible for your own happiness. We sometimes convince ourselves that life will be better after we get a better job, make more money, get married, have a baby, or buy a bigger house. Yet the accomplishment of any of those events might not make any difference at all. There is no magic secret to happiness, but it starts in your head.

7. Don’t stress out.

You can’t escape stress, but you can avoid creating unnecessary anxiety. You just need to find a stress reliever. Mine is sports—going to a game, playing golf, swimming or jogging.

If the stress just won’t go away, then you have to make some changes in your life that might be more stressful in the short term, but healthier in the long run.

8. Don’t take guilt trips.

I remember a story about the worry tree. At night, an accountant would go home from work and place all his worries on a tree in his front yard. The next morning he would pick up those worries on his way to work, but surprisingly, they weren’t as heavy the next day.

9. Visualize yourself as youthful and with endless energy.

I learned years ago that visualization is the most powerful means of attaining personal goals. Visionaries can achieve whatever they want by determining a plan to attain it and expecting positive results.

Visualization doesn’t do the planning, and it doesn’t anticipate the obstacles, but it gives you a real idea of what is possible, if you want it bad enough. Vision is not so much what you think as how you think. If you can visualize it, you can make it happen.

Mackay’s Moral: If you want to stay youthful, stay useful.

http://www.success.com/article/dont-be-an-old-grump-here-are-9-ways-to-think-young