The Battle Inside You Part 2

In the last column, I discussed the negative emotions of anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, superiority, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, and ego. This column and the next, will look at the positive emotions of joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.

Within each of us is the battle between positive and negative forces. We have the power to pick which force dominates. It is normal to feel conflicts. The character of a person is determined by the decisions we ultimately make, not the internal battles we experience.

Positive energy creates more happiness, attracts good things, and draws other positive people to you. Since you do have a choice, why not choose the good feelings?

You can find joy by paying attention to all the good that exists. Even when the world appears to be filled with turmoil, there is still a lot of good many people overlook. Don't immerse yourself in the negative. Overexposure to negative news and people will smother your joy.

Finding joy takes more effort than finding problems. If you habitually take the path of least resistance, joy will be elusive. People are not joyous by accident, they consciously choose it. It's hard to stay full of joy if you spend a lot of time with those who aren't.

Although most people want peace and serenity, they ironically embrace conflict. They seek out problems in every situation. You can't feel at peace when you have constant conflict. So instead of looking for problems, seek solutions.

There is a solution for every problem. Just the realization of this should provide some peace and relaxation. Being at ease enables you to more readily identify solutions. As you become adept at solving problems, you take them more in stride. As a result, you feel more peaceful.

Love is touted as an elusive emotion that has the potential to solve all of mankind's problems. The fact is, there are people you don't like and there are those who don't like you. Even so, it's important to be able to love yourself. This means you are happy with who you are and constantly strive to improve.

When you feel good about yourself, you are more likely to treat others well. Individuals who are mean, typically are not happy with who they are. Although love won't solve all problems, it will make life much more pleasant.

Hope keeps you going when the going gets tough. If you give up hope, you prevent yourself from solving problems. Hope works best when you take a proactive approach. Those who sit and wait, are not proponents of hope,

Happy people are always filled with hope. They smile, laugh, and are pleasant to be around. People who drag themselves around, don't have hope. Hope is a cause, not a result. Action is what makes hope work. Hope for what you want. Then take the necessary steps to get it.

Self-confident people exhibit humility. They don't have to prove anything, nor do they attempt to boost their own stature by putting others down. Humble people are content with who they are. They have no need to boast.

Humility is a quality that makes one comfortable to be around. No one likes to associate with an egocentric person. Those with humility always take an interest in others. Additionally, they are always respectful and considerate.

The next column will continue with kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.