JOB or JOY -- Which Is It For You?

      I ask the question because we spend more than one third of our lives going to our place of work and we are paid to do our job.  And if it is not joyful for you, then you might choose to consider making a change.  And if you don’t feel you can make a change due to the responsibilities you are financially committed to, then you really need to consider looking for a plan B.  And plan B starts within.

     Too many people have a J-O-B and drag themselves out of bed to get to their workplace, only to exchange their time for the feeling of being underappreciated, over-worked and underpaid.  And at the end of the day, many head back home and watch the television before going to bed, only to do the same thing the following day.  And lots of those same people are leading lives that are unfulfilling.  Yet, they continue to “put their time in” because they feel they do not have a choice.  And I do not blame them, certainly in this economic climate.  Better to be employed versus not, right?  In addition to that, many watch the news and fill their minds with depressing, tragic stories and visions while getting sucked into the media hype about doom and gloom.  And for those who choose “reality TV” as their escape, you are still left feeling unfulfilled as you get caught up in wondering what “Snooky” is doing next and which “Palin” is going to make the headlines.  And I wonder if this is what “the Creator” had in mind for us.  Our sacred texts state “we are created in the image and likeness of GOD,” and when we are able to notice our environment, if GOD was/is able to create such beauty in nature, why are we, with the ability to reason and manipulate our environment as we choose, why are we struggling as individuals, families, communities and nations?  The headline today states, “Plans being drawn up to let states go bankrupt.”  How much hope do you find in how the media positions their headlines?  And from what I can see by taking on a ‘big picture’ vantage point, the media is designed to perpetuate the doom and gloom attitude because the powers that be do not want free thinking and fully creative citizens and must have citizens who are fully dependent on the government  for everything.  Will we all sit idly by and watch our “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” be taken away from us, if it already hasn’t been?

     Having J-O-Y in all that we do versus having a J-O-B is a position to strongly consider.  Joy helps each of us feel at ease and feel both creative and empowered.  On the emotional scale of consciousness, Joy, Creativity and Empowerment are all at the top of the scale.  Whereas feeling hopeless and disempowered are at the other end of the scale.  Which end of the scale do you choose to be on?

     The word JOY is defined as follows: 
1. the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation: She felt the joy of seeing her son's success.
2. a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something or someone greatly valued or appreciated: Her prose style is a pure joy.
3. the expression or display of glad feeling; festive gaiety.
4. a state of happiness or felicity.

     When was the last time you truly felt a sense of joy within you, your body or your life?  If it is recently, I applaud you and encourage you to stay in touch with that feeling as much as you can.  For it will help you deal better with what the world is offering and allow you to be less affected by it, and certainly feels better than anything less.

     So how to feel one’s joy?  A simple exercise to consider is to understand for yourself what brings you joy?  What activities can you do to find joy within yourself?  Perhaps reading a good book, cooking a delicious meal, exercising, writing, arts and crafts, decorating, going for a walk, making plans for a vacation, taking a vacation, spending time with loved ones or anything else that creates the sense of joy within you.  Take the time to get in touch with that feeling and find ways to incorporate it into your life on a more regular basis.  Make it your top priority to find joy in everything you do and in every moment possible.  Especially while at your job.

     Now let’s talk about your job for a moment and consider how you can take your current place of employment and make it more enjoyable.  First and foremost, we need to change our attitude about our current job, OR we need to change jobs.  From everything I have experienced in life, it is much easier to change your perspective (attitude), meaning the way we see things, than it is to change your whole external environment (your job).  Therefore, the easy way to find joy in your job is to place it there.  What do I mean by “place it there?”  Simple, you have to begin looking for reasons to see and feel joy in your job. 

     Being that you are in charge of how you feel, it is up to you to choose to feel joyful about your job.  The alternative could be that you do not have a job and that doesn’t seem like much to be joyful about.  Looking for a job and collecting unemployment is not a fun thing to do.  Therefore, having gratitude for being employed, no matter what your job is, having one is reason enough to be joyful.  Similar to waking up every day; we all know what the alternative is to that.  And realistically, it starts with your attitude.  Having an ‘attitude of gratitude’ is the one to have.  Being grateful for what you currently have and then looking for reasons to feel grateful for all that you experience is the reason for living.  And as I alluded to, if you are not busy living, you are busy dying.  And given the choice between living a joyful life versus living a miserable life seems like an easy choice to make.  And ‘creating it’ versus ‘thinking it’ is not that different.  It comes back to how you choose to look at things. 

    Your perspective and what you bring to your perspective is the key.  Being grateful is the fuel that makes the perspective go forward.  So when taking yourself to a better place with a better view of life, it simply requires making the choice to be grateful and to continue to look for things to be grateful for.  And when you take the time to write down all that you are grateful for, and you look deeper and deeper into your life, you will begin to feel the gratitude for what you have currently.  This will inspire you to live a greater and more appreciative life.  And it is important to understand that in every situation, there are positives and negatives to be identified.  How you choose to focus is up to you.  My suggestion is to focus on the aspect that gives you feelings of joy and gratitude.   Initially, this requires continuous conscious thought about being grateful.  And for some, this is tough to do.  What I can promise you is if you make the commitment to making a list by writing out those things you are grateful for, pretty soon, you will begin to notice more and more about your life that feels good and is good.  But this is an exercise that requires a commitment.  And like any exercise, when you first do it and it is not something you are used to, and therefore it can make you a little sore.  And the thought of that can create resistance.  Please appreciate that the resistance is what makes you better and stronger at the activity.  So if going into it you expect there to be a little resistance to the new way of thinking, know that the resistance is strengthening the positive attitude muscles.  And the more you use them, the stronger they get and the easier they are to engage in your life.  Please understand there is no one but you who can choose to offer resistance to your process.  You could simply embrace the opportunity and feel joyous throughout the whole process.  And I will leave that choice to you.  The point is you, as is the majority of the world, are in need of a change in perspective.  We all need to reach for joy and happiness in everything that we think, see, do and feel about our lives.  Jesus said to “turn the other cheek.”  In other words, change the way you look at things by changing your perspective.  Look at things with new eyes and see the opportunity to feel joy.  And make it your dominant intention to see joy where ever you look.  Appreciate everything you see.  Admire all that is outside of you and I promise you one thing.  If you commit to doing this exercise, I am certain your life will begin to fill with joy.  And then regardless of what you are doing, whether it is at home or at work, you will begin to live a life of a joyous, appreciative, creative, empowered person.  Then as all the change that is going on around us takes place, you will embrace your life as you choose to see it. And that is much better than any other perspective.

Dr. Huntoon has a single mission:

To support as many people as possible in their quest for health and enable them to improve and maintain their health to the highest level possible, while educating them about the benefits of Chiropractic, Natural Healthcare and Holistic Living, so they in turn can teach others to support us having a healthy community.

Your Choice

• Continue doing the same thing and nothing changes or it may get worse

OR

• Try something different and get a different result that makes you happier and healthier.