"You cannot protect yourself from sadness without protecting yourself from happiness."

in the past few weeks, i've given some peps talked and gotten some pep talks and thought about about life and how attitude makes the biggest difference. i know that some people find it annoying thing go well for me without effort and while i seem to have good luck its not really luck. here's what i do to keep a good attitude and why i think works out for me.

i only played on a sports team as a kid but the lessons they teach really are life lessons.

all you can do is your best: that really is what life is about. just do the best you can do. try. i make mistakes. a lot. i haven't always done my best but there has never been a time where i gave my 100% and felt as if I had failed. every time i gave it my best effort, i knew that was all i could do. in school, in work, in love. sure i might not have always gotten what i wanted or did the best compared to other people but that's the point. i can only do my best, not yours. if you give your best you don't have regrets.

"When I looked at you, my life made sense. Even the bad things made sense. They were necessary to make you possible."

there is no "i" in team: repeat. there is no "i" in team. when someone in sports forgets this lesson they're called a ball hog. michael jordan is arguably the greatest basketball player but he was always acknowledging his team and family for getting there. you may be proud of yourself but along the way there was help. its a rare person that didn't have one person affect their life. good and bad you are a result of your experiences and the people in your life. sometimes the absence of a person can be just as important as the presence of another. i am surrounded with a HUGE team of support and love and that has made me who i am today.

when you meet me, you are meeting the brains of 3 parents, my moms extremely compassionate nature and positive personality, you meet my one dads sense on intuition and ability to make immediate connections with strangers, you meet my other dads generosity and ability to accept a person for who they are, you meet my grammas big heart and smile, you are meeting my grandpa's strong character and opinions. you meet my best friends ability to take any situation and look for the best and never forgot to enjoy life and just laugh.

"Feel lucky for what you have when you have it. Isn't that the point? Happily ever after doesn't mean happy forever."

life may not be fair but play as if it is: whoever said life was fair was lying but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to live that way. if you go around with an attitude that life is about luck or fairness or think because some people cheat to get ahead, it's okay, you're missing the point. life is about doing the best you can while causing the most kindness and the least cruelty. sometimes we win and lose. sometimes we do our best and it isn't enough. this leads me to the next lesson...
it doesn't matter if you win or lose it's how you play the game: again it's not the outcome that matters but how you got there. if all you care about is winning you might cheat, lie, do anything to win. when you lie and cheat you lose a lot of people. how many movies are about a person who has the riches, the big job, the fame, and are alone because they only cared about the prize and not people? in the end nothing matters but having people to love. does your dog or cat care of you won the big name? no. they just love you. don't compare yourself to other people. don't get sour grapes. just play fair and be kind.

"Why didn't I learn to treat everything like it was the last time. My greatest regret was how much I believed in the future."

you get what you give: if you only do bad things or think negative, why would god things come back to you? if you treat people bad, why would they want to hang out with you? if you don't do any work or go to class or don't turn the big project in for the boss, why would get an "a" or the big promotion? if you smile, work hard, do your best, good things happen. life sucks sometimes but i don't know anyone who is a positive person that is unhappy really. even when the bad things happen the right attitude goes along way. its old but true, if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. if you go around comparing yourself to other people you won't get anywhere.

practice makes perfect: perfect is an unrealistic idea but practice makes things better. again, michael jordan didn't get to where he was without practice. determination. working hard. failing and getting back up. sometimes we get lucky and land the dream job, the dream relationship, but no matter how we get them, keep it up. nothing is ever so good we can just stop. never stop giving the one you love silly things, surprise dates, i love you's. never stop learning or living or laughing or loving..

i am by no means perfect but i am filled with eternal optimism and hope for the best. this attitude has made all the difference in my life. this week started out pretty bad and when i needed some help, the bestie was there to keep my positive and hopeful. and her pep talk got me back and the week today has really turned around.

"People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be."

being positive is something i have to be. when you are around someone that is always complaining it is awful. it brings you down. it makes you unhappy. it makes you not want to be around that person and its annoying. i know at my old job i became this person. i was always bitching. it was not fun. when i saw what i was becoming i made a change. i left a good paying job and did what makes me happy. i figured out a way to get what i wanted in a reasonable way and here i am.

live. learn.laugh.love.breathe.be fearless.

"People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway."
Mother Teresa