Something to Be Enthusiastic About

"We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about."

-- Charles Kingsley

I've never experienced much luxury in my life, but I grew up with parents who were prime believers in the Gospel of Comfort. Everything was done to make life as comfortable as possible, even though that goal went largely unacknowledged.

Enthusiasm, on the other hand, was met with a bit of skepticism. If you were too enthusiastic about something, anything, you violated the other twin pillar of my parents hidden religion -- moderation. Moderately comfortable was what they were aiming for. Not mansions and yachts or even the biggest TV on the block, but nice everything.

The problem is it's hard to get very enthusiastic about "nice." Enthusiasm, which comes from the Greek en theos, i.e., God within, is about passion excitement and internal fire. Nice just doesn't quite cut it.

For most of us, it's hard to get very jazzed about the idea of living a nice life. We need something more. We need something to both draw energy from, and invest energy in, something that makes us really want to get up in the morning.

If we have that, as Chuck points out, we're happy. We're happy to be alive. We're happy to live another day and do that thing, or pursue that goal, that really sets us ablaze with the energy of life.

So, forget trying to make your life one giant La-Z-Boy showroom. It's OK to be comfortable, but don't make the pursuit of comfort your number one goal in life. And luxury should receive even less of your attention. It is in fact totally unnecessary and a waste of planetary resources to fill your life with luxuries. And, even more important -- those yachts, mansions and Mazarattis won't really make you happy.

Instead find something to be enthusiastic about -- one thing or many things -- and pour yourself into it or them. Give whatever you love, all you've got, and lo and behold, happiness will be your blessed byproduct. The God within transforms both your external world and you at the very same time.

God Within

"We rely more on enthusiasm than on actual skill."

-- Chris Martin. Lead singer for the band Coldplay.

We've all yawned our way through a set played by competent, skillful musicians. We've all nodded off in class as a knowledgeable and skillful research professor droned on and on about Shakespeare or String Theory or some mind-numbing algebraic formula. Hell, I once sat through such a boring ninety minute lecture on female orgasm, a topic that is usually guaranteed to pique my interest, that when I emerged from the lecture hall I was on the verge of embracing celibacy!

Knowledge, or skill, in and of itself, is as dry as a popcorn fart. Competency alone leaves us cold.

Enter enthusiasm. Enthusiasm comes form the Greek word "theos" which literally means God. And "en" which equals in. Enthusiasm, then, is simply "God within." It is the energy of the Divine shining through us, and thus through all that we do.

If you've seen Coldplay, either live or on film, you know that Chris Martin brings a wild, manic, almost spastic, enthusiasm to their concerts. He is so excited and jazzed by their music, and by what he is doing, that audiences are swept up in a a wave of excitement and good vibes.

Imagine bringing that same vital energy to your work, whatever your work is. No, Im not suggesting that you need to adopt the Sgt. Pepper Thrift Store look, or that you must run through the halls of your workplace with wild abandon. Your enthusiasm may burn and smolder inside until just the right moment when it springs forth through your work, through your interaction with customers, or through your relations with your coworkers.

The thing about enthusiasm is that it's contagious. Your "God within" invites everyone else's God within to come out and play! Not formally, not through words or e-vites, but through resonance, through vibration. You vibrating at a higher frequency helps raise the vibrational rate of everyone around you, so bring it!

But to bring it, you first must find it. And you know where you find it? Within, of course. You must first tap the energy within to share it without. Through meditation, dance, yoga, running -- whatever works for you-- you attune yourself to the Divine and then shine It all the time.

Sure, you continue to build skill. It's like the old joke "How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice." But even practice can be done with joy and elan vital, as a dance rather than as drudgery.

Here's one simple, fun way to tap into your enthusiasm -- choose your theme song. You know how when NBA players run onto the court, or major league pitchers emerge from the bullpen, they play a snippet of a song? That's each player's individually chosen theme song. What's yours? As you enter work each day, what song do you want echoing through the halls, what anthem would you love to hear shaking the walls of every cubicle? Mine is "You May Be Right" by Billy Joel. You know, "You may be right; I may be crazy. But it just may be a lunatic you're looking for!"

Choose yours and rock on! Rock on with enthusiasm! What better way to honor God within?