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Everyone knows that change is hard. The longer I live the more true it seems that people change when the pain of changing becomes less than the pain of staying the same. What if, in Bizarro World where all things are opposite, it's Christmas day and Ebenezer Scrooge is sitting alone in his cold house eating his cold porridge and ranting to himself, and he liked it that way?
"Bah humbug! Is it my responsibility to fix all of the world's woes? I don't think so. What am I, 'Master of the Universe Responsible For All Mankind'? Hey, I don't have the power to save all the people in the poor houses. Speaking of which, how the heck are those folks ever going to pay me what they owe me if they're in prison? Oh well.
"And what's up with my slacker nephew Fred and his floozy wife? Talk about your "snowflakes." All they want to do this time of year is have fun with their friends and burn too much coal. Where the heck is their work ethic and their drive to get rich and buy a lot of stuff? These young people nowadays...
"And another thing, I didn't take on Bob Cratchit and his big family to raise. It should tell you something if you need a turkey the size of a wheelbarrow to feed your family! It's too bad they have a cute kid with a disability and a knack for pithy quotes that's in poor health, but that's not my problem.
"I'm better off spending my time and money working in my business rather than wasting it on these people. Besides, who needs the love of family and friends at Christmas, or any other time of the year for that matter. Bah humbug!"
Yikes, Ebenezer sounds like some of us Boomers these days! I say we leave Bizarro World forthwith, and instead celebrate Mr. Scrooge's epiphany on that fateful Christmas Eve. He realized that he was missing out on two of the four primary sources of happiness: a caring relationship with himself, and caring relationships with others. He liked his work and he had enough money to pay his bills with some left over for fun, so he had a lock on the other two sources.
He decided to treat himself and others better because it made him happier at Christmas (and for the rest of the year, too). I say we join him and gift ourselves with all the joy we can during our time here on the planet, so here's wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
High-Performance Habits:
1. Resist any temptation to be grumpy and cynical like the unchanged Ebenezer at Christmas (or any other time)--it's no fun for you or the people around you.
2. Get out there and enjoy yourself!Happiness is about having a good balance among the four primary sources of happiness.
3. Caring relationships with yourself and with others are two of the four, so don't miss out.
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