The latest thoughts from David…

The happiest person I have ever met was penny-less.  She had enough to eat and a roof over her head but very few of what she called ‘luxuries’.  At the time it seemed everyone around her was buying (and sometimes parading) expensive garments and gadgetry, yet this didn’t seem to interest her.  Had she not been my mother I would have called her a fool.

Back at school, all (and this really did mean all) of my friends had the latest trainers and designer jackets and I felt I needed these to be happy.  Over the years I have met many many unhappy people who (according to what I believed back in school) had loads of reasons to be happy – cars, watches, exotic holidays, designer clothes, designer clothes for their pets(!).  I have come to realise I had in fact got the whole thing inside out.

There are obviously significant things which can make people unhappy and come from outside us (grief, illness etc.) but in the main I have found happiness comes from within even for people without.  I urge everyone I coach to start on the inside and let the rest take care of itself.

Ask yourself ‘am I happy on the inside or am I chasing round the world for external things to make me happy?’

This is not a question aimed at getting us to throw away all our worldly goods.  I LOVE my iPod and have a child like excitement about skiing and holidays in general but they don’t make me happy.  I already am.  It’s just the way I choose to be… on the inside.