quotes about change | Wiley's Wisdom

You Get What You Give April 5, 2013

Filed under: Man's Best Friend — Wiley Schmidt @ 10:46 pm
Tags: awards, Buddha, daily post, daily prompt, dog blog, dogs, happiness, joy, pets, postaday, quotes about change, quotes about life, terriers, Theodore Roosevelt, Versitile Blog Award, Very Inspiring Award

Four months ago, it was just an idea. I was playing in the snow with my mom and she smiled the most beautiful smile and it came to me. I want to find a way to make more people smile like that. A few days later, I began my blogging journey on a quest to share joy: from the ground up with whoever needed it. While I obviously hoped that my joy would reach people, I nearly fell out of my little doggie bed when I got my first couple of followers. “Believe you can and you’re halfway there,” as Teddy Roosevelt said.

Today, I celebrate you, my inspiration, my supporters, my friends. The blogosphere has brought to life the words of Ronald Reagan who once said “we can’t help everyone but everyone can help someone.” What a powerful impact we can have through simplicity. What a blessing to be able to be the difference we want to see in the world. Dear blogging world. You’ve been so good to me. While I set out to share my joy with the world, I did not expect the joy you would share with me.

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Thank you especially to Kuruk, Lissa and Lisa who have most recently nominated me for the Versatile and Very Inspiring Blog awards. Both types of awards make a similar suggestion to include seven facts about yourself and then paw forward the appreciation to other inspirational bloggers.

Getting to Know Me

1) I recently got a new collar that says Rescued on it. It might be my new favorite thing.

2) I don’t bark, except when animals (live or animated) appear on the television.

3) I believe in being the change I want to see in the world. Change starts in the mind, but it lives in the heart.

4) I purr like a cat when I’m getting an especially nice scratch in the right place.

5) Little people are wise beyond their years if you ask me.

6) I own a more than one doggie Packer jersey.

7) My favorite place to sleep is right between my mom and dad in my forever home.

I learn something new every day and a lot of that is thanks to the relationships I’ve been fortunate enough to have in the blogosphere. Again, I mean no disrespect to those who nominated me in doing this, but I nominate you – reader and supporter of my blog for these awards. There are so many deserving partners who inspire me on a daily basis with their words, commentary and friendship. Thank you all for being you.

Four months ago, I had no idea who you were, and now I consider each and every one of you a valuable part of my life. “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle,” suggested Buddha, “and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”

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Making Happiness a Habit March 11, 2013

Filed under: Man's Best Friend — Wiley Schmidt @ 10:11 pm
Tags: adventures, be the change, compassion, dog blog, dogs, happiness, insight, inspiration, joy, love, Mahatma Ghandi, pets, postaday, quotes about change, quotes about happiness, terriers, Weekly Photo Challenge

The great and powerful “they” say it takes 21 days to get into a new habit. Good, bad or indifferent as the habit may be, I’d have to say I agree. On day 22 in a row of writing this blog, my newly certified habit found its words in a post on how money can’t buy happiness. As I reflect on that day, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I had happiness on my newly habitual mind.

Fast-forward to today: my 81st day in a row blogging every day and it is definitely a happy day in my life. Today I hit a landmark of 1,000 likes on Wiley’s Wisdom, which inspires me to contemplate Mahatma Gandhi’s words on happiness. “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony,” Gandhi reminds us. I celebrate this happiness today.

It hasn’t been easy blogging every day. I often worry about whether my stories are even interesting or my thoughts insightful. But this isn’t about me. It is about my heartfelt mission in life to share my thoughts on joy with as many people as possible through what I say, and that is exactly what I will continue to do.

So today I choose share the happiness I feel with you. “Be the change you want to see in the world,” as Gandhi would say. To every single one of you who have supported me, offered me feedback, and (in all honesty) been a friend to me: thank you. I’ve never really had friends before, at least not in the practical sense. Yet in less than three short months since I started Joy: From the Ground Up, I now have more than 150 of them. I am so blessed.

I don’t think it is a coincidence that I wrote one of my first posts on happiness the day after it became an unconscious habit for me. When it comes to coincidence I am also a believer in something I call “God things.” You know, those moments when the stars align, the heavens open up and the birds sing our most favorite harmonious song. Or when you think, say and do are in harmony, as Gandhi would say. But there’s this thing about those moments that I can’t help but find thought-provokingly ironic. You have to actually pause to appreciate them or the moment may just pass you by. I don’t think I have to worry about that anymore. It’s official: happiness is a habit for me now.

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Thoughts on Change: Let’s Go Places February 4, 2013

Filed under: Man's Best Friend — Wiley Schmidt @ 9:20 pm
Tags: Business, change, daily prompt, Dimmer, dogs, Environment, happiness, joy, love, Margaret Mead, Maya Angelou, Organizational Change, perspective, pets, postaday, quotes about change, terriers, Toyota

I’m not necessarily a fan of Toyota as a brand of vehicles, but a commercial of theirs caught my attention recently.

“Let’s go places,” the voice says, “Not just the ones you can find on a map, but the ones you can find in your heart. Let’s go beyond everything we know and embrace everything we don’t. And once we reach our destination let’s keep going.”

I’ve heard a lot of different people perspectives on change. My ability to see only portions of the world’s color spectrum does not impact what I have observed. In general, change is a grey area. Words like scary and intimidating face off against words like invigorating and exciting.

When it comes to making major life changes, I haven’t always had as big a say as I would have liked. I wouldn’t have chosen to be separated from my mom when I was still a puppy, for example. But I did what I had to do to make lemonade out of life’s lemons.

“If you don’t like something, change it,” said mover and shaker Maya Angelou. “If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”

Ultimately that is exactly what I’ve done. I embrace change wholeheartedly because experience has taught me change is like a light without a dimmer switch. It’s all or nothing. It’s a state of mind, and (if you let it happen) it will bring some light into your day. Without it, we can get lazy. It gets a lot easier to life in default mode rather than living to our destiny.

So I share these humble thoughts on change with the world, hoping that my perspective can bring some light to somebody who is facing a crossroads. Somebody who needs to decide whether to live life to their destiny rather than their default. Somebody who fears change.

“Never believe that a few caring people can’t change the world,” cultural anthropologist and writer Margaret Mead said. “For, indeed, that’s all who ever have.”

Good, bad, and ugly, I believe there is something to be said for change.

“Because inspiration doesn’t favor those who sit still,” says the man in the Toyota commercial. “It dances with the daring. It rewards the courageous with ideas that excite, challenge and inspire. Ideas that take you places you never imageined. Ideas big enough and powerful enough to make your heart skip a beat and in some cases maybe two. Let’s go places.”