Life lesson from an old grizzled vet...

Earlier this week I was on a zoom call with someone and the next day they were no longer with us. Tragedy can strike in an instant. Life can be so fleeting sometimes. Not so easy come, and (unfortunately) easy go. I'm no psychology expert and certainly cannot claim to be Mr Happy Go Lucky. But I was raised by a psychiatrist and have done some work on the subject of Positive Psychology. With that in mind, here are a couple of tips to hopefully maximize your happiness and wellbeing while we still have time.

• With your partner/boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife: Express your love, early and often. Don’t be shy with words, touches, kisses, and intimate acts in the bedroom.
• With your children: Tell them how amazing they are on a regular basis. Focus on a specific skill, be it their sporting endeavors, musical recitals, education exploits, etc... and point out the job well done and how impressed you are with their growth.
• With your parents (if you are lucky to have them still around): Thank them for everything they did to help you be a better person and succeed in the face of adversity. You can also adapt the child bullet-point here, especially for those parents that are actively involved in new ventures.
• With your colleagues at work: Give a compliment on something that they may not expect. It could be something as trivial as telling someone you love their shoes, or a congratulatory email about a task they accomplished/problem they helped resolve.
• With random strangers (I'm thinking of the servers at restaurants/coffee shops in particular but it can extend to anyone you don't really know): Try to be kind and understand that they are humans too. Yelling at the Delta ticket agent for something beyond their control (no matter how idiotic the airline policy might seem), won't help and will probably make matters worst.

Bottom line is this. The old adage is that actions peak louder than words. And generally they do. But that doesn't mean that words are unneccessary. They still mean a lot and can help make all of the difference. I felt this first hand yesterday when at the conclusion of our tennis season at school, I received a number of thank you's from rather unexpected sources. It helped me navigate the rush hour freeway traffic with a smile on my face.