Flip It Over

I think a key to a happy life is to have most of the time in your life with only minor instances of unhappy moments. It's not reasonable to say every minute is going to be a 10 out of 10 but the bad times should be few and far between. If you read anything on happiness, they always tell you do what you like, enjoy the little moments, use your body as it was intended and all that stuff. It's true, that's how you should live to be happy.

For a number of reasons, I am finding the good moments are interspersed in a lot of times I want to forget. I haven't always been like this and I want to get back to how I was.

I have been a gliding instructor for a long time and I still remember one of the first things taught to me about instruction is when you debrief performance you always highlight the good, the areas to improve, and how to improve. So, lets sit down and have an old fashioned debriefing.

The Good

I have great family. Let's be honest, my parents are awesome. They are the old couple that makes you believe you can have true happiness.

I have great friends. The people I met since moving to Ottawa are great and only augment some amazing and lifelong friendships from my pre-Ontario life.

I'm healthy. I don't have much wrong with me other than the occasional bump or nick. Sometimes I enjoy beer too much and pay for it, but I can point to where the pain is coming from.

I'm fit. Almost ten years ago I made a conscious decision to exercise regularly. It has and continues to pay dividends way beyond my investment.

The Areas for Improvement

Work. I haven't been enjoying my job much as of late and it shows. There are a lot of reasons  and I'm part of why it hasn't been awesome.

My Diet. I've been putting a lot of crap, including way too much Coca-Cola into my body lately. It has also become very redundant.

Everything is Unbalanced. Don't get me wrong, I love to fly airplanes but flying and dealing with flying issues has grown to a disproportionately large part of my life.

How To Improve

I can't change the mood of everyone at work. We are in a state of change and uncertainty. It is what it is but I can change my approach to it. Instead of dreading the next thing I can look to be an agent of positive change. I can approach problems as opportunities to help others, which I love to do. I can be a beacon of positive energy. I can start having fun again and find ways to laugh. I can return to the guy who doubts if we can do it and return to the guy who asks how can we make this successful. It's the only way to make it though any job.

I can change what I eat. I know I'm not going to be the guy who makes everything in a Vitamix and never indulges in unhealthy food but if I eat healthier food more often and cut the Coke out (for the record as I write this I am powering though a bit of a caffeine withdrawal headache because I haven't had any Coke for 42 hour) I will feel better. More veggies, reasonable servings of meat, and less processed food in on the horizon.

I think my balance in life will improve slowly. Part of why I have been spending so much time on aircraft stuff is I have been completing a Commercial Aeroplane Pilot Licence. The written exam is finished and the night flying is done. I have about 20 hours to go. It will take a while to get it done as I will be ramping up the flying in my day job over the summer but I think I need to change this to a journey to enjoy not a task to complete and the enjoyment will return. Once the licensing flights are done, I can fly when I want in my off-time to share with others what is so great about aviation in small planes. 

I also need to do more of the things I love to do besides flying. I need to get out and take more pictures, even if it makes me seem busier, it will make me happier.

So, there it is, my personal prescription to a return to happiness. It's going to take time. It's going to take effort. It's not always going to be a smooth transition but the results are going to be worth the effort.