Stop And Smell The Roses
7. Stop and smell the roses.
If you are in the pursuit of happiness, it is wise to pause and be happy now and then. People like to say life is a marathon but they are wrong. Life is a series of sprints. In a marathon there are no breaks to stop and enjoy your work. There is the ability to be so driven and so focused that you miss some of the milestones you have actually reached.
This Tool is as old as the early hammer. It has been around for ages and would be impossible to give any one person credit for. This Tool, like the hammer, has lasted so long because of its value. Beauty and miracles are all around you but you fail to see them. You don’t miss them because they are not there, you miss them because you fail to open your eyes and look.
When I began to use this Tool, I could not believe how much was going on around me. When I continued to push and reach new goals and new levels, I realized that the fulfillment that I used to get from reaching my goals was not there like it was before. I was reaching new levels and didn’t even realize it. Before I even got a chance to celebrate my wins and achievements, I was setting new levels. Pushing harder and harder was not equating to being happier and happier. It was not computing in my brain to success. The simple reason was that I didn’t stop to take a look around and realize how great things were around me right at that very moment.
Another thing happens when you stop and smell the roses around you, you slow down. You observe more and talk less; you will listen more because you are taking in the surroundings. It is like a new level of consciousness that you have not felt for some time. Stop and celebrate your wins (see Tool 24). You have roses all around you but if you don’t stop to smell them, what are they good for? Also, when you stop to smell the roses, you realize that most likely your life is right in the middle of a garden that not only has roses to smell but beautiful plants to observe.
When I started doing this Tool, I never realized how much beauty there was in the sky alone and it was free to look at. How many on their deathbed claim they wish they had taken more time to look around them? When you become an observer of life, you are more likely to have enjoyment in yours. You will be shocked at what you are missing around you simply because you never took the time to look.