Whether positive or negative, we are heavily influenced by our immediate surroundings. We are complex, dynamic creatures that often mirror actions, thoughts, and emotions. Have you ever noticed how you behave around a certain group of people, and then behave differently around another group just minutes later? Have you ever noticed how you feel inspired in certain situations, but saddened in others? Have you ever had a specific smell or certain song evoke a strong emotion?

Our senses are continuously sending signals to our brain to process. What we see, touch, hear, taste, and smell have a direct affect on how we think and feel. Especially influential are the people that surround and interact with us. Our neural pathways are constantly firing to transmit data and adjust our state of being accordingly. Sometimes we are conscious of these changes to our state of being, while at other times the changes go unnoticed. Though be sure, changes are always taking place.

By grace, we have been endowed with logic and intuition. If we harness these powers, we can become more aware of how a certain atmosphere is influencing us. And if we have awareness, we can be proactive in either embracing the atmosphere if it is positive, or guarding against the atmosphere if it is negative.

We have many choices in life, and the atmospheres that we choose to inhabit will be some of the most important choices we make. They will affect our health, happiness, and overall well being. Hence, maintain constant awareness of your immediate surroundings, and especially the people therein. Empower yourself to make changes as needed to be your best self. Choose to reside in your optimal personal atmosphere (YOPA).

We are born with an innate desire to be happy and content. We all have a happy medium deep down inside. Even when we go through bouts of strife, anger, and pessimism in life, our bodies naturally nudge us back in a direction of contentment.

We continually seek out happiness and contentment in our daily lives whether we recognize it or not. Our subconscious mind is always working in the background. Even curmudgeons who appear to be miserable to everyone else, are seeking out happiness and contentment in their own unique ways.

Obviously, some make the process of finding daily happiness and contentment harder than it needs to be. Following are some suggestions to make it easier.

• Make your health a priority. A healthy mind and body is "step one" that cannot be skipped.
• Recognize that sometimes happiness and contentment are decisions of your will. You must simply decide that this will be your state of mind no matter what the world throws at you. Attitude is everything.
• Forgive yourself and others. Start anew. Read my previous blog post on the power of forgiveness entitled FORGIVE[N].
• Be grateful...for everything.
• Find something to look forward to each and every day. The morning of, or even better the night before, think about something positive that you are going to do that day. The practice of visualizing, anticipating, executing, and reflecting is powerful.
• Find joy in the little things. No matter how seemingly trivial, identify something that will bring you even the smallest amount of joy such as the smell of coffee, the warmth of sunshine, or the comforting words of a favorite book.
• Live a simple life. Step back from the overwhelming complexities, and leave the details to God. Realize that it is perfectly fine to just be yourself.
• Recognize that you, and only you, are responsible for your life...your health, your happiness, your outcomes. When you stop blaming others and realize that you hold the power of happiness within, life suddenly gets easier.
• Develop a relationship with God and work on your faith. With time comes greater understanding and inner peace.
• As a general rule, if something does not make you happy, do not do it very long. Temporary struggles do not have to become permanent realities.

Remove everything. Start with nothing. Then add back in only the essential components.

Simplicity is the natural power of this strategy. The application of the strategy does not have to be complicated in any sense. All we need to do is take a deep breath, re-center mentally, and evaluate a situation in the simplest of terms possible.

Step 1. Remove everything. No matter what you are working on, just take everything away. Do not sort things or over complicate this step. Simply remove without thought or analysis.

Step 2. Start with nothing. After executing Step 1, you should logically arrive at Step 2. However, it is imperative that you get to nothing before proceeding any further. A state of nothingness is key.

Step 3. Add back in only the essential components. Since you are starting with nothing, you can now more easily identify what is important and what is not. When deciding what to add back in, remember less is more.

This strategy can be applied to almost everything in life....to do lists, cluttered closets, daily routines, relationships, problem solving, and the list goes on. Repeated application of the strategy typically yields better results, not to mention a sense of inner peace and control. Suddenly, your personal universe will begin to feel orderly again.

Move in a direction that gives you ever increasing personal freedom...

The freedom to be
The freedom to think
The freedom to aspire
The freedom to act
The freedom to become
The freedom to do what you want, when you want, where you want, and with who you want

Indulgence in such freedom must be balanced with personal obligations, service to others, and the needs of society. However, be encouraged that one can indeed enjoy a large degree of freedom while still being a responsible and helpful person.

Much to the surprise of the masses, ever increasing personal freedom is a product of repeated introspection and personal discipline. As one grows in wisdom, one learns that rules in life are important. The right rules followed with discipline can in fact be extremely liberating.

Accordingly, evaluate the degree of personal freedom in your own life. Then move forward with discipline and confidence in a direction that gives you more. You will find a wellspring of happiness and inspiration along the way.