Enjoy the little things in life :)

Motivation. Happiness. Love. These are all things that, at one time or another during our lives, we lose or have difficulty finding. Troublesome times force us to dig deep into our pockets of self motivation, self respect and encouragement. There are always going to be trying times in our lives. No matter how hard we try to steer away from confrontation, tragedy or heartfelt sorrow, there will always be times in our lives where the will to move on and not dwell on the past needs to outweigh the inherent desire to slump around feeling sorry for yourself. To put bluntly, we all need that extra push to get us from A to B sometimes, we all need that shoulder to cry on, or someone or something to show us the way in our professional or personal life. No matter how low you feel, you should always feel like you can turn to someone, or something that means a lot to you and open up to them or it. Motivation can come in small bundles, it can lead to great things unfolding in your lives that you never thought before possible. It can give you that feeling of joy and happiness that lead you to think to yourself, 'You know what? Monday mornings aren't all that bad'. Maybe that's pushing the boat out a little bit too far :)

Over the last few years, things have been rocky to say the least for myself; losing family members coupled with temporary jobs and quite frankly a non existent love life. But I realize my life is not as bad as I sometimes think it is. Whether it is small pick me up photos that give me something cheerful to think of during the day, or whether there are songs that put me in a good mood, no matter what it is, there are always ways to make yourself feel better. There are always ways you can find that will make yourself happy, you never should feel like you are worthless or that you can't achieve what you want to achieve all because you have a seed of doubt in your head saying you can't. If you have your life, you have absolutely no right not to have ambition, desire and that fundamental confidence that will see you conquer any obstacle life throws at you. Life is not an easy ride, there is no guidebook to how to live the ideal, perfect and fulfilling life. It's a roller-coaster of emotion, hard work, and pride. You always look for that metaphorical strike, the glory, the success straight away, but sometimes you may only get a 5 pointer, or may miss completely. You may even need the ramp to help guide you on the previously untouched path to future happiness. Whichever way you look at it, whichever cliched metaphor you want to use, there is no shame in asking for help in life, there is no shame in taking on board the notion of practice makes perfect. For every current expert in their profession was once a beginner, a novice who needed that same guidance you may be seeking out at this moment. It is always important to keep your head held high, but low enough that you do not lose all sense of reality. Be aware of popping your head above the parapet as there may be others looking to take you down a peg or two if they see you as a threat to their own well-being. No matter what you do in life from now until your dying breath, there's something everyone has a right to do, and that is to never give up! No matter how hard you fall, get up. No matter how emotionally drained you are, know that in time, you will get better and come to an understanding whereupon you can deal with these issues. No matter how many obstacles you see in your path to happiness, take each obstacle as they come, never stop to imagine what could be, and focus on what will be once you take out the obstacles one by one. Focus on the positives in life and the negatives will take care of themselves.

Having belief in yourself is crucial to living a fruitful, enjoyable and fulfilling life. Believe in yourself and you can make anything happen. The power of will is a strong thing, and when put to good use it can spark off a chain of events that could lead to a happy you. For me, I take happiness in the small things in life. The simple things are normally the ones that provide you with the most joy. So enjoy life, take things as they come and make sure you have a reason to smile at least once a day. Life is a gift, and every day is a chance to make a difference and to be happy. Keep your head up and make sure you enjoy life for there is nothing worse than having regret, so make the most of now and take life by the reigns!

Jonathan Whitehead