Once -A-Day Prescriptions for Joy by Keith Varnum

1. Act whimsically at least once a day.

Do something that is outrageous or totally out of character, out of the box,
not the "usual" you. Invite spontaneity. Do something meaningless, without
any purpose or value-just because you feel like it, just because it's fun! Surprise yourself!

Don't dress outside in. Dress inside out. Let your spirit define "who you
are" rather than the outside world. Don't rely on external image-clothing,
hairstyle, status symbols-to tell people who you are. Wear your inner self
proudly and let it attract what is most harmonious to you.

Expand your playground, your arena for self-expression. Practice harmless
and minor outrages. Seek a larger freedom in your life. In the unexpected
comes the joy of feeling truly alive.

2. Throw away one item a day.

Or give it away to Goodwill or someone who will actually use it. For every
unused item you discard, you create the space for a truly useful item to
come into your world.

Clear the decks! A major cause of loss of energy is lots of "stuff" that
accumulates around us. Schedule time to keep the piles-physical and
mental-from building up. If you don't, the backlog will sap your energy and
overwhelm you. You may think that doing Feng-Shui takes too much time, but
creating open space in your world actually frees up more time and energy to
attract the people and opportunities that will really satisfy your heart and
soul.

3. Every day forgive one act of yours or someone you know.

By living a life of conscious self-acceptance and learning to forgive
ourselves, we become able to forgive others. The gift of forgiveness is for
ourselves, not the person who caused us pain. By forgiving, we are taking
back the control that we have given over to those who we feel have hurt us.

By learning to forgive others, we give ourselves the gift of freedom from
the past. Forgiveness loosens the debilitating constraints of anger,
resentment, cynicism and despair-and frees our heart to swell with joy. When
you feel someone has harmed you, try to understand the situation by putting
yourself in his or her shoes. Stop holding others and yourself hostage.
Accept our human tendency to make mistakes and move forward.

4. Meet one new person a day.

Every human being has a unique story to tell-and a special gift for you.
Every personal life story you hear expands your own personal horizon of
possibilities. Even a one-minute encounter with a stranger enlarges your
universe.

5. Discover one new shape in Nature every day.

As you encounter shapes and forms that are new to your awareness each day,
you increase the possibilities for re-shaping your world. As you expand your
experience of the infinite spectrum of ways life expresses itself on the
planet, you add to the range of choices and options available to you.

6. Every day ask one fresh question of life you've never asked before.

The quality and scope of one's life is determined by the quality and scope
of one's questions. Questions open doors, invite change, welcome new
opportunities. Question the past-liberate your future!

7. Each day eat one new food you've never eaten before.

Or mix foods and ingredients that you've never combined before. Or eat a
type of cuisine you've never enjoyed before. As you open to fresh culinary
experiences, you also open to fresh social and spiritual adventures.

8. Change one old entrenched attitude each day.

Take ownership of your attitude. You control your attitude. It's not
something that you are genetically or environmentally stuck with. You can
choose your attitude.

Avoid all-or-nothing thinking. When we fall into the trap of the
all-or-nothing mindset, we experience any obstacle as equaling total failure
of the entire project-or of one's entire life. Try not to overreact or blow
events out of proportion. Focus on what is working in a situation, not on
what's not working at the moment. Don't let the little things drive you
crazy, weigh you down or immobilize you. Lighten up, smile more, frown less.

Remember that each step in life is just one small step-and is not
necessarily a vital or crucial step. If you don't succeed at that step, try
another approach in another direction from another angle. Keep the big
picture in mind. Breathe.

9. Find a fresh aspect of your life to laugh about every day.

How do angels fly? They take themselves lightly.

Certainly there are times when life presents major challenges and one needs
to act clearly and directly, but behaving responsibly and efficiently does
not by any means preclude humor and light-heartedness. In fact, a flexible,
fluid, upbeat approach and attitude is crucial to releasing magic and
miracles into the healing equation.

Inspiration and breakthrough are often born from the spirit of playfulness
and exuberance. A spontaneous wink, a funny smile, a comic gesture can
unlock deep fears and stress in a stern person or tense situation. Through
conscious silliness the soul can emerge.

Doctors, nurses and attendants now use "clowning" in hospitals to jolt and
move the healing process with patients. Scientific studies prove that when
people are laughing and having fun, they experience less physical and
psychological pain-and recover faster. Laugh more, mend quicker and live
longer!

10. Be silent and still once a day.

Make regular time for yourself in which you can be totally alone. Just sit
quietly with no expectations. Do nothing!

This may feel very uncomfortable and strange in the beginning. Do it anyway.


Give yourself time and space for the inner voice to make itself heard. Your
inner voice will speak either during that quiet time, or else during the
events of the rest of your day. Or a synchronistic event will occur. Or
someone will tell you the message you need to hear. Or you will get a sudden
flash of insight in the shower or watching a movie.

11. Tolerate one less undesirable aspect of your life each day.

Take action to change the situations in which you are settling for less than
your desired dream. You can only compromise yourself-and your dream-so much
before you lose sight of the vision altogether. The things you are putting
up with keep you from being yourself and evolving as a human being.

Speak up. Once you know what you need, let others know. Be honest with
others about your needs and boundaries. If you remain silent, you'll
disappoint yourself and others more than the truth ever could do.

12. Take on one fresh risk or challenge every day.

Fear less, dare more. Take at least one action each day that scares you.
Face one truth you haven't been able or willing to acknowledge before. Don't
let fear paralyze you. Set yourself free.

Take your aliveness up a notch. Ask for more and reach for more. Upgrade
your dream. Revitalize your life. New experiences make our lives richer.

13. Tell one new person your dream everyday.

Network. Elicit feedback from a trusted friend, mentor or family member.
Listen to a neighbor, co-worker or store clerk. Value your relationships.
Call someone who is uplifting, or uplift someone else.

It's your joy-to use or lose.


Drawing from the wisdom of native and ancient spiritual

traditions, Keith Varnum shares his 30 years of practical success

as an author, personal coach, acupuncturist, filmmaker, radio

host, restaurateur, vision quest guide and international seminar

leader with "The Dream Workshops". Keith helps people get the

love, money, and health they want with his F-r-e-e Prosperity

Ezine,F-r-e-e Abundance Tape and F-r-e-e Coaching at

http://www.TheDream.com.