John is a Christian but feels that all religions have both positives and negatives. He prefers to live by his own code of ethics.

Here Is a Creed for the Third Millennium

Mankind has never been short of written guides instructing the various races, cultures, and religions how they should live their lives: from the 10 Commandments (almost identical in both The Bible and the Quran), to the teachings of Buddha, Confucius, Gandhi and other spiritual leaders.

Below is a creed, or set of rules, that I have compiled that I feel would make our lives happier and more fulfilling in this third millennium.

Definitions

• Creed: "A set of beliefs that influence the way you live."—Cambridge Dictionary
• Third Millennium: January 1st, 2001 to December 31st, 3000 in the Gregorian Calendar.

12 Rules for a Better, Happier Life

1. Always Be Grateful
2. Fill your life with love and give praise where it is due
3. Find your purpose in life
4. Appreciate what you have and stop comparing yourself to others
5. Practice forgiveness every day
6. Surround yourself with happy and inspiring people
7. Look for the positive in every situation
8. Embrace your inner child
9. Do good and don't be a hypocrite
10. Keep an open mind, don't judge and discriminate
11. Live for the moment
12. Don't worry or stress about the future

The Rules Explained

1. Always Be Grateful

Often to appreciate true gratitude, you have to first have experienced hardship. For example, having lived in poverty, or overcome a serious or life-threatening health problem.

Every time I start to feel bad about my situation, I think about how lucky I am that things are not worse. I focus on everything going right in my life (instead of everything that is going wrong). You too can train your mind to count your blessings in life every time your thoughts starts to drift towards negativity. Happiness becomes immediately accessible to you even in the toughest moments of life.

Despite the tough times, I realized I had so many blessings like my health, my wonderful family, my true friends, my pets, my writing, and so forth. For me, gratitude has become my magic formula for happiness.

2. Fill your life with love and give praise where it is due

There are 24 hours in every day. To achieve true happiness, you need to fill as many of those hours with love, be it for people, passions, work, hobbies, or even pets. Love fearlessly and unconditionally. Try your best to do what you love for as many hours possible every day. I love writing. I love my family. I love my friends. I love my dogs. I love movies. I love reading, I love sport. I try to spend as much time as I can on those.

Praising others is a part of showing love. If someone deserves to be thanked for their efforts, actions or words, don’t hesitate to praise them and show them how much they are appreciated.

A lot of things in life are beyond our control, but we can control how much love we embrace in our lives.

3. Find your purpose in life

I was 50 before I realized that writing was what I was meant to do. When you find your true purpose in life, everything starts to make sense. You stop living for the weekends, and thinking about what you are going to do after work. You stop getting the Sunday night blues and Mondayitis.

If you examine the happiest people in the world, there are no artificial boundaries between their personal life and their work life. Life is just life. You can find purpose in different situations at different points in your life.

When my kids were growing up and going to school my purpose was to provide for them so they could achieve their goals and we could lead as happy a life as possible. When my elderly parents were ailing with failing health it was my purpose to try and help them and care for them as best I could.

Today, one of my purposes is to love and care for my wife, and my other is one that ignites my soul. My mission in life is to encourage, inspire, and entertain through the power of the word. To try to educate people on the inequalities of income, gender, race, education, and human rights throughout the world, and to spread the word on the urgent need to protect and nurture the environment.

Deep in my soul I feel I have been put on earth for this purpose. You need to find yours if you haven’t already.

4. Appreciate what you have and stop comparing yourself to others

When I was much younger, I would often compare my level of success with my friends and acquaintances, or even celebrities. I would contemplate how much money I was earning, how much I had saved, how prestigious my job was, was my house stylish enough, and everything else. I will tell you that it brought me nothing, but discontent.

I'm now older and wiser, and realize that what others are doing in life has absolutely NOTHING to do with YOUR own happiness. True happiness comes by doing what you love with people you love. It is becoming the best version of yourself possible. Each of us has a unique destiny and has to follow a different path.

You will never be truly happy if you keep wishing you had things you don't. The grass always seems to be greener on the other side but that does not mean it's actually is.

If you keep comparing yourself to others, wishing your life was like theirs; your face and body were like theirs; your family was like theirs; your partner was like theirs, you will feel forever jealous. Instead, try to live simply and appreciate what you have, acknowledge that everyone is different, and stop comparing yourself to others. Then, you will experience joy and happiness in everyday life.

We all have our unique gifts, talents, and opportunities and we have to make the most of those. Happiness stems from living an authentic life that ignites your soul. Everything else is meaningless. Happiness cannot be measured by bank accounts, elaborate houses, or fancy cars. Happiness is found within, not without. Discover what makes you great and live your life fulfilling that.

5. Practice forgiveness every day

It is easy to harbour resentment and hold grudges. We can even beat ourselves up for silly mistakes that we’ve made or things we could have done differently. Forgiveness is the elixir of the soul. Forgive yourself. Forgive others. No one is perfect. We all make mistakes.

Forgiveness takes strength. Only the weak cannot forgive. Ironically, when we carry negative energy in our hearts towards others, we can never be truly happy. So, forgive everyone who has wronged you. Forget everything that has brought you misery. Let go of those negative emotions. Embrace all these as lessons learned, and look toward the future with hope.

6. Surround yourself with happy and inspiring people

It might sound harsh, but you need to eliminate negative people from my life or at least reduce the time you spend with them. Those who complain about how unlucky they are, how they have been wronged by someone, how the world is unfair, or how their life is horrible.

Negative people are always blaming others for their problems, and 99% of the time, they are the direct cause of their own problems. Life is too short for negative people who cause you problems. If you allow negative people in your life, you will become negative and attract more negativity. The opposite is true too. Surround yourself with happy, inspiring people who live with gratitude and you will see that your life will be happier too. Happiness nurtures happiness. Positivity nurtures positivity.

7. Look for the positive in every situation

You will always run into unfortunate situations in life that are outside of your control. You can choose to feel sad, annoyed, angry, or stressed about the situation or turn it around and focus on the positive. You can choose to be stuck in a bad situation or let go, move on, and start afresh.

Learn from a failure or a bad experience and never repeat the same mistake. Every setback and bad situation in life teaches you something. Growth doesn't happen in comfort. Take it as an opportunity to train your mind to be stronger, more resilient, and more equipped to be able to deal with things life throws at you.

8. Embrace your inner child

As children, we are full of love, innocence, wonder, dreams, goodness, and imagination. Nothing is impossible to children, and no one is evil. Yet, somehow when we become adults, we lose that magic.

My close friends and family will tell you that I am still just a big kid at heart. I made a decision never to let life’s problems and worries conquer my inner child. I love jokes and playing pranks. I love to fantasize and dream, I love joining in my grandkid's games. I believe most people are good, and I believe nothing is impossible. I admit, I have had more than my fair share of bad luck, loss, misfortune, and failure. However, I choose to protect my inner child and live as freely as possible. It would be sad if we all let the bad things and bad people in our lives destroy our inner child and belief in the goodness of the world. Life is beautiful.

9. Do good and don't be a hypocrite

Always give more than you take. One of the lessons promoted by Jesus in the Bible is that “ You reap what you sow.” I believe that, and that by sowing goodness in the world we reap an abundance of good things in return. Also, when we do good, it fills our hearts with happiness and satisfaction.

Toss some spare change to a busker, or homeless person. A cup of coffee or a burger may mean more to them than a three course meal at a swanky restaurant for you and me.

Doing good, often requires us to move out of our comfort zone and to think of the needs of others before ourselves. This isn’t always easy, especially in the beginning when you may not have an abundance yourself, but it doesn't always have to involve material things. You can give your time, effort, and advice. Maybe you just need to lend an ear to someone who is lonely or in distress, or offer to do a grocery pick up for someone who is invalided or housebound.

Don't be a hypocrite by only doing and saying good things when you think you will be rewarded or because others are watching. Mean everything you say and let your actions demonstrate that.

10. Keep an open mind, don't judge or discriminate

Having a narrow mind can hurt you more than you think because naturally we as humans don't like being disapproved of. We don't like the feeling of being wrong because it makes us feel rejected and unaccepted.

Being narrow or closed-minded means you stand firmly on your beliefs and ideas and oppose others who think otherwise. You will feel agitated and uncomfortable when you are confronted by people with different beliefs and ideas.

On the other hand, if you have an open mind, you don't mind hearing about the different beliefs. In fact, you will embrace the difference, want to understand it better, and become adaptable and flexible in your approach. You won't have a problem or feel guilty about accepting others. You'll feel at ease with differences and embrace change.

11. Live for the moment

I believe that one of the reasons little kids are happy and dating couples are happy is because they live for the moment. They focus on what is happening in front of them at the present and pay attention to the person or people they are with. When you live in the moment and do your best, you just feel happy. Why wouldn't you? You don't worry about the future, neither do you feel sad about the past.

Take every waking hour as it comes and do what you are supposed to do and complete what you're supposed to complete. Stop over analyzing or trying to predict and plan things too far ahead. The only constant in life is change. Just live in the moment and do your best.

For me, happiness is not a destination. It is not something to pursue. Don't wait for happiness. Don't chase happiness. Happiness is a choice you make to see the beauty in every day. Happiness is a conscious celebration of the precious gift of life and all its blessings. Happiness is the journey.

12. Don't worry or stress about the future

Many of us worry. We worry about our career, health, finances, and about the people we love . . . and about our future. We worry because we are scared or anxious. However, worrying doesn't make anything better unless we stop stressing and start taking actions towards our goals. If you're worried about your health when you get older, then you should start eating healthy and exercising regularly. If you're worried about your finances, then you should start saving up for the rainy days. Take action now, and let the future sort itself out.

If you're worried about your kids, then encourage them to take actions to help you ease your worries. Stressing about your loved ones doesn't actually make them better. It only affects your health and your blood pressure. Your children will need to make decisions themselves. All you can do is to encourage them and help them move in the right direction.

Off the Shelf

A book I chose to share is A Creed For the Third Millennium by Colleen McCullough (author of The Thorn Birds.). According to Amazon.com's product description:

Tomorrow's America is a cold and ravaged place, a nation devastated by despair and enduring winter. In a small New England city, senior government official Dr. Judith Carriol finds the man she has been seeking: a deliverer of hope in a hopeless time who can revive the dreams of a shattered people; a magnetic, compassionate idealist whom Judith can mold, manipulate and carry to undreamed-of heights; a healer who must ultimately face damnation through the destructive power of love.

Although this novel was written in 1985 it is set in the “not-too-distant future“ and looking at the current United States political and social climate it appears very relevant/topical right now. A very interesting read.

© 2018 John Hansen

Comments

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 26, 2018:

Devika thanks for reading. We should never compare ourselves to others. We are unique and and need to live our own lives.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 26, 2018:

Thank you Shaloo. What a great idea, a gratitude journal.

Devika Primic on December 26, 2018:

Every point you mentioned here is true. I know of people who try to compare themselves to me and that is so stupid. It is important to be yourself, be grateful and happy. An excellent write here.

Shaloo Walia from India on December 26, 2018:

Such a valuable advice for a happier life! Living in the present moment and practicing gratitude has been of immense help to me. I make it a point to write in my gratitude journal on a daily basis.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 25, 2018:

Thank you for your kind words Genna,.i am glD you found this relevant to bookmark and use as guide, muchappreciTed. Merry Xmas.

Genna East from Massachusetts, USA on December 24, 2018:

Hi John...

I don't think there has been time in my memory of the world that we need these words more. I've bookmarked this page...I plan to return on those tough days when such encouraging and thoughtful words help to lift, maintain and inspire. Thank you. Blessings to you, John, and to your family for a special holiday season.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 23, 2018:

Thanks Alyssa. Yes I thought it may be a good guide to try to incorporate in the new year. The book is worth the read.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 23, 2018:

Thank you for reading Chris i have struggled with some of these in the past but I`m learning all the time and do try to practice what I preach.

Alyssa from Ohio on December 22, 2018:

This is a wonderful list and a great reminder for us all as we move into the new year. Thank you for the book suggestion as well. I am going to add that to my reading list.

Chris Mills from Traverse City, MI on December 22, 2018:

I read this a few days ago but didn't leave a comment. It is easy to see that these words come from a person who practices them. Thanks for challenging us with such profound truths.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 19, 2018:

Thank you for reading this Linda, and for the kind comment. Glad you enjoyed and found it inspirational.

Linda Crampton from British Columbia, Canada on December 19, 2018:

This is a great article, John. Thank you very much for creating it. It's certainly inspirational!

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 18, 2018:

Thank you for finishing this article Rodric. Please feel free to use it as your muse and to expand on any of the other tenants/rules as you see fit. I feel they do offer important messages so sharing them in other ways can only be a good thing. Yes, "Trouble don't always last" that is for sure.

Rodric Anthony from Surprise, Arizona on December 18, 2018:

I finally finished the article after taking a break to write one inspired by yours. John, this is a great article. As I read the other tenants, I feel prompted to write more on other tenants. This means that your article is my muse. With all the things going on in life it is so easy to dwell on the negative. This article is a reminder not to let the reality of what we are going through be the only thing we realize about living!

Pain and distress occur to everyone, but the sun still rises and give off its beauty to the world. Not to minimize a challenging experience, but to put it in perspective. When the challenge is done, the sun will still be warm and brilliant. The is an old gospel song call 'Trouble Don't Last Aways'. I love it because it is true.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 17, 2018:

Thanks, Kim. I can totally relate to your struggle to forgive yourself. I have done some stupid things that I have had trouble forgiving myself for. However the best advice I should if yo7 can’t change it, forgive and forget and move on. Blessings to you and have a happy Christmas.

ocfireflies from North Carolina on December 17, 2018:

Dear John,

Per usual, you deliver a praiseworthy hub. For me, number five is the most difficult. I can forgive others, but I tend to be especially hard on myself.

Blessings Always,

Kim

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 16, 2018:

I agree, Flourish it is all about our perspective. Someone going through the most horrific time like your second friend and stay positive and appreciative, where someone else who thinks it is the end of the world losing a refrigerator full of food (although I admit that is not a fun situation) or me having my car stolen, which seemed bad at the time. Thank you for reading and commenting.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 16, 2018:

Thanks PoetikalyAnointed. You are so right that we need more smiles than frowns at this moment. Let’s aIi continue to right encouraging articles/poems etc until the end of year.

FlourishAnyway from USA on December 16, 2018:

I especially liked your first point. I Know someone who recently had a near meltdown over a broken refrigerator and two weeks worth of ruined food when she already was experiencing a tight budget. As disturbing as that is, it’s important to keep perspective. She is healthy. At the same time I know someone else who will undergo radiation treatment and 7 weeks of chemo starting Monday, a week before Christmas. It will permanently alter her ability to swallow and speak. She may end up having to get a chunk of the back part of her tongue cut out yet she is hopeful and appreciative for life. It’s all about perspective.

PoetikalyAnointed on December 16, 2018:

What's up John?

I love your Creed's from 1-12! We need encouraging Hubs like this to spread the power of Love and Happiness. We need more smiles than frowns right now.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 16, 2018:

Marie, thank you for reading and sharing your insights, this is not primarily a book review though their is a short introduction to a book at the end. I started this series I call “Off the Shelf” where I choose a novel from my bookshelves and the us the title as inspiration to write a poem or story (usually quite unrelated to the theme of the book.)

Marie Flint from Jacksonville, FL USA on December 16, 2018:

A nice book review. I didn't realize it was one until I got to the bottom of the article.

Thank you for the definition of "third millennium." I also looked up "busker," as it was not familiar to me. (I actually thought of a busser, one who clears tables at a restaurant.)

Bad situations are valuable inasmuch as they are lessons. The lessons mold us by encouraging us to get back into center.

I think one has to be careful with pranks because some people are very sensitive and can take them the wrong way. So, I recommend being careful with that one. Although, I had an elder brother who was an expert at pranks and everyone loved him.

Probably the advice that works for me the best is about the inner child. A good example was when I was with my elder daughter, who is 38 years of age, at Cooper Hawk, an eating establishment with a connoisseur's winery. We were wine tasting that evening and, by custom, were standing at the bar. (I wish to add that I normally don't drink any alcohol whatsoever, but I love my daughter and wanted to keep her company, so I bent my rule, besides--wine is a decent source of antioxidants!)

Anyway, between sips, I began a few ballet positions (ballet DOES use a bar in practice). No, I did not put my foot up on the bar, but I did use it for balance into an arabesque.

"Mom, stop!"

Like I said, I love my daughter, so I did.

By the way, the best tasting wines were Sangria, Rhubarb, and Romance.

Blessings!

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 15, 2018:

Thank you manatita, much appreciated. Blessings to you..

manatita44 from london on December 15, 2018:

Holistic writing from you, John. I always welcome these kinds of inspirations. What is needed is the opportunity to awaken the Consciousness, the only way to heal the form. Thank you so much and have a great Sunday. Best wishes to your wife and family.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 15, 2018:

Hi Brother Sean. Thank you for the compliment. You humble me that you want to translate this into Greek and use it in your blog. Feel free to spread the love. Blessings to you.

Ioannis Arvanitis from Greece, Almyros on December 15, 2018:

My dear brother John, I am so happy! I thought so, but now I am sure that we belong to the same creed, the Creed of Love! This amazing article you wrote, is a piece of my Heart, my Soul and it's my life! What a beautiful way to live! I am so proud of you, so proud to know you and call you my brother.

I want to ask you a big favour. If it is alright with you, I would like to translate this article into Greek, in my blog (of course by your name), so that my students can read it.

Thank you for your voice!

My Love embrace you all!

Sean

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 15, 2018:

Thanks Mr Happy, glad you enjoyed the read. I also appreciate your comment.

Mr. Happy from Toronto, Canada on December 15, 2018:

"Every time I start to feel bad about my situation, I think about how lucky I am that things are not worse." - Yes, indeed: things can always get worse. Thus, I am grateful for what is. Important lesson here.

"You stop living for the weekends" - Haha!! I know that path from others. Luckily, I never lived for the weekends. I consider myself blessed, for that alone.

"True happiness comes by doing what you love with people you love." - "Happiness is Overrated". It's a good book by Angelo R. Belliotti. I have it somewhat advertised on my profile page lol

"you need to eliminate negative people from my life" - Okay. Who would You like me to start off with? Who upset You most? Haha! One word can change everything: "my". I do get your point though: having negative people around doesn't really help, other than providing us an example on how not to Be, in my opinion.

"Happiness is a choice you make to see the beauty in every day." - All kidding aside, "happiness" is a state of mind. We are each responsible for our happiness. It comes from within.

"Many of us worry." - Why? "Worry is the wrong use of imagination."

I enjoyed the read - thank You! It is appreciated.

May Wakan Tanka walk with You.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 15, 2018:

Thank you Li-Jen, for your kind words and I am sure you will achieve your inspiration too.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 15, 2018:

You are welcome Paul. Yes, I used to always worry about the future....how will I afford that, what will I do if that happens etc...now what will be will be. I concentrate on the present.

Li-Jen Hew on December 14, 2018:

Hi Jodah. Positivity is encouraged and I'm grateful to you for using the power of words to create this. We need more positivity in our lives and your article is a good reminder and helpful. Your article did acknowledge my inner queries, about worrying about loved ones. Not only that, you help to change readers' outlook on life. You mentioned your life purpose and I'm glad your managed to fulfill it. I am inspired to be like you too. Thanks for the share.

Ryan Paul S Balagtas from Philippines on December 14, 2018:

Thanks John for this. Indeed, people (including me) worries too much about the future. But when the future we fear finally comes, we realize all the worry is not worth it. We should have just had more faith and enjoyed life. Also, being in a situation better than what we imagined to be in is a blessing we often take for granted. Great article to inspire us be better in life.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

You hit the nail on the head MizB. Damnit!! You mean I could have summed this all up in just those few words? lol Thank you for reading and commenting, my friend.

Doris James MizBejabbers from Beautiful South on December 14, 2018:

John, I hear you. I think you are saying "grow up, accept responsibility, forgive, and give lots of love and thanks in return." I believe that is the true message of the Ascension into the Fifth Dimension. You've summed it up beautifully. I'm so glad to know you, my friend.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Yes, Linda. I may not have much actual reference to God in there but yes he is behind it all and LOVE is the defining force that we have to show in all we do. Thank you for reading.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Elijah, you summed it up very well. Yes, only when we lose the inner child do some of the other rules need to come into play. I actually started out with twenty rules but found I could combine some into one. I could have still added more but I didn’t want this to be so long it would be unreadable. Thank you for your insights as always.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Sanaa, thank you for reading and for the generous comment. I don’t know if my article is any better or worse than others out there offering similar advice but I am happy that my style appeals to you. It is good to have you as a reader of my work.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Thank you, Liz. There is a lot to digest I admit. Iactually reduced the list of rules from twenty I started out with.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Hi Shauna, thank you for that. Yes, you could sumarise a lot of this just into “embracing your inner child.” When we lose that is when the problems start and the whole world becomes just too damn serious.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Hey Eric, I knew you would relate to most of these. As for number six. I have never met a homeless person who was complaining about there situation. They usually must accept it as part of life and do what they need to survive. We can actually learn a lot of humility from them. Thanks for reading “neighbor.”

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

It sure would, Bill. I actually thought of adding a video of Imagine, but I have used it before elsewhereso decided against it. Maybe I will still add it at the start.

John Hansen (author) from Queensland Australia on December 14, 2018:

Hi Rinita, your comments are always special to me and this one is no exception. Yes, there are a lot of those “rules of life” articles out there. I tried to reduce the length of this by combining rules etc. worrying that the article was too long. There was just so much to say and I still don’t think I covered it all. I am glad my style of writing appeals an speaks to your heart. Thanks again My Friend.

Linda Lum from Washington State, USA on December 14, 2018:

John, what a wonderful message, stated beautifully. And honestly, it's all about love, isn't it? Love others, and love yourself and show love and reverence to God--an attitude of gratitude.

Elijah A Alexander Jr from Washington DC on December 14, 2018:

Before I read your interpretations, John, I will say numbers eight through twelve expresses eight.

When we "Embrace (y) our inner child" we don't even know how to "Do good and don't be a hypocrite" except for judgments embedded in us in the womb that they haven't learned the meanings of yet they "Keep an open mind, don't judge and discriminate" unless we are forced to. We'll never see a child do anything except to "Live for the moment" without "(Don't) worry or stress about the future", they just do whatever their parents doesn't stop them from doing because our man's basic nature is to objectively explore for obtaining the purpose of. With our specie's name, man, meaning "minds able to comprehend all things and exceed the ability of everything earthly" we must do that to enter the stage where we DON'T DO THE OTHER SEVEN? The first seven are judgments which a young child haven't developed, thus, there should only be the last five.

Now, to read the rest!!!

A magnificent expression of how NOT to allow what we were conditioned to reject take our childlikeness away from us. What you said is the meaning behind "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh," when we realize it all began with our parents teaching us "don't and do" half of almost everything. What is required is to allow our childlikeness of not accept "things for girls are not to be done by boys and vise versa" for learning with objective minds the "cause and effects so we can change the consequences." The concepts of right/wrong and etc. disallow our knowing there is a time and place for everything and will never cause us to make judgments under any circumstances.

Thanks for sharing it.

Sanaa Najim from Morocco on December 14, 2018:

Hi creative john Hansen :

I've read many articles which try to push people to create a happy life and move on by being optimist and valorous also having a positive energy to fight various challenges in life But your article is really incredible . the flow of the words and your style attract my attention.

It's an excellent work from a great writer like you . I am so glad and proud to have the chance to read your articles.

Sincerely

Sanaa

Liz Westwood from UK on December 14, 2018:

This is an interesting and inspiring list. There is a lot of food for thought in this article.

Shauna L Bowling from Central Florida on December 14, 2018:

I second Bill's comment, John. Rinita's comment is spot on, too.

These are all good creeds to live by. I especially loved your explanation of embracing your inner child. That pretty much brought all twelve points together very nicely.

Eric Dierker from Spring Valley, CA. U.S.A. on December 14, 2018:

Did you right/write this just for me? Have you been reading my mail. I do take issue with this; "6. Surround yourself with happy and inspiring people." I ain't a gonna do it. I just can't cotton such a notion. Sure I got my cool loving folks. But I pull up some change and walk to my bodega. I surround myself with homeless losers and flip quarters. Lost a buck yesterday, I hate when it comes up heads.

But as I am reckoning maybe that is the folks you mean. Never seen one of them cry though they got a good damn reason to.

It is cool to have you as a neighbor.

Bill Holland from Olympia, WA on December 14, 2018:

It would be one hell of a world if we all followed these creeds. I can hear John Lennon singing "Imagine" in the background. :)

Rinita Sen on December 14, 2018:

I will say this. There are several motivational articles on the internet that talk about how to best live your life, with many points common with yours. So what makes your article stand out? Firstly, your incomparable style of writing that directly speaks to the reader's heart. Why? Because you write from your heart, inevitably because of your love for writing. Secondly, you've put in a little bit of you in every point with real examples. This shows that these things can actually be followed. Lastly, you've once again excelled at creating something deeper in meaning from the title of a book of a totally different topic. Thank you for this article, John. We all need such genuine reminders from time to time.