I keep hearing and reading how pessimistic and apathetic we are as a society. I have really started paying attention to what I see and hear through media, family, and friends. Sometimes we don’t realize when our thoughts, words, and actions turn toxic. It is a full-time job to keep the toxicity at bay and away from my family and my personal space.
One simple act that combats life’s toxicity is to practice seeing the good in the world around us. If you can get better at seeing the good, then being the good should come easier. Seeing the good all comes down to choices. First, you must choose to look. Then, you must choose not to judge without knowing all the facts. If you are not going to go on your own fact-finding mission to ascertain the truth behind an observation, then take it for face value, choose a path of action based on the information you have, and keep moving forward. Don’t turn the good into bad or dismiss it in apathy just because you choose to ascribe personal biases to your observation.
Oftentimes, we see the good, but twist its motivation and landscape into something false or partially true to satisfy our inherent biases that lean towards the darker side of life. To change this behavior, we need to change our dark-side inherent biases. To move all our inherent biases towards the lighter side of life, we need to change our exposure time to everything toxic. This is where you need to be brave and courageous because many mainstream and running-with-the-herd activities are toxic.
Pay attention today and tomorrow to what goes into your mind and soul via media, books, gossip, e-mail, and everything your eyes feast upon. How much of it is driving you towards excellence? How much of it is influencing how you view life? How much of it can you choose to avoid? What is keeping you from making a different choice? My wife is great at seeing the good. Aside from her beauty, this is one of her traits I find very attractive. I love being around her because she sees the good. She is practical and questioning enough to keep things real, and she proceeds with caution when required. But she helps me and our family see the good. Seek these lighthouses out.
Strive to be a lighthouse and, in time, you will emanate the shine others seek.
It is so easy to let the dark prevail, but all that is good is best seen in the light.
We all need help. Let’s help each other to see the good.
