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You are here: Home / Archives for diehappy

Are you ready die happy today?

February 2, 2008 by diehappy Leave a Comment

Official Launch February 2nd 2008

die-happy-today-5.jpgDie Happy Today is a unique self-development blog devoted to providing you with creative and different ideas on living fully. I don’t want to die today and I don’t want you to die today. But if either of us were to die today could we say that we died on a day that we were authentically happy.

Self-development with attitude. This site is self-help with attitude. You will encounter a strong personal voice on the topic of self-help. I absolutely promise never to tell you to create SMART goals, cajole you to win one for the gipper, or trivialize your problems by saying when life throws you a lemon make lemonade. I am tired of recycled Dale Carnegie. I read him when I was 12, over 40 years ago. Don’t get me wrong, I think he had a lot to offer but I don’t want to read anymore recycled and tired versions of his work. If I want to learn the ideas of Dale Carnegie I will read Dale Carnegie.

Invitations not impositions. I am tired of self-development speakers and writers making impositions. It works like this: If you just follow my advice, buy my mastery series, hire me as your coach,  or take my exclusive one-time-only-designed-just-for-you-packaged-course you will live happily ever after. I don’t want to make impositions or make false promises. I will offer you invitations but like the Buddha said, you must be a lamp unto yourself.

No more positive thinking. I am positive that I am tired of positive thinkers. Sometimes it just seems so false and lacking in realness. If my glass is half empty I don’t need to think about it, I just need to pour more water into it! Bad things happen to both bad and good people. I am not a negative thinker either. I believe in constructive thinking where we look at the role our thoughts, expectations, and beliefs play in the day we have participated in constructing.

Expect contradictions. We have a convoluted brain that seems to resemble a cauliflower to me. If you are looking for consistency go buy cheese whiz or eat smooth rather than crunchy peanut butter. Expect contradictions, ambiguities, uncertainties, and complexity here. I believe it was Walt Whitman who once said, “Do I contradict myself, very well I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes.”

Why read David Zinger’s Die Happy Today?

  • This site will get you thinking – I have taught Educational Psychology at a major Canadian University for over 20 years.
  • This site will get you laughing – My Master’s thesis was on humour in counselling (yes in Canada we put “u” in humor and just for the “l” of it we have an extra l in counselling.
  • This site will get you commenting – I will not deliberately set up controversy but I am now 53 and it is time to fully offer my perspective, you will get the real zing here.
  • Most importantly, this site will contribute to you being able to say, I would die happy today.

You will see 1 or 2 articles a week at this site plus a number of short snippets – quotations and a comment on topics such as happiness, death, and self-development.

You don’t get another life like this one. You will never again play this role and experience this life as it’s been given to you. You will never again experience the world as in this life, in this set of circumstances in quite this way, with these parents, children, and families. You will never have quite this set of friends again. You will never experience the earth with all its wonders in this time again. Don’t wait for one last look at the ocean, the sky, the stars, or a loved one. Go look now. ~ Elisabeth Kubler-Ross & David Kessler in Life Lessons.

Filed Under: David Zinger

Preview: Die Happy Today & Ground Hog Day

February 2, 2008 by diehappy Leave a Comment

This site will formally launch today – February 2, 2008.

ground hogI hope you have a Happy Ground Hog Day!

For the 117th year on February 2nd, millions around the world will breathlessly await the most famous furry forecaster, “Punxsutawney Phil’s” annual prediction of an end to winter. February 2nd brings the most-watched weather forecast of the year — and the only one led by a rodent! Legend has it that on this morning, if a groundhog can see its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. If it cannot see its shadow, spring is on the way.

The result: PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — Brace yourself for more wintry weather. Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow Saturday, leading the groundhog to forecast six more weeks of winter.

What does Ground Hog Day have to do with Die Happy Today? Not much unless you believe in shadows, ground hogs, or they both have 3 words in the title and end in day. Now that is a stretch but not much more of a stretch then placing your faith in Phil and his forecast.

I think February 2nd is a nice break in the middle of January and February.

Why are you writing Die Happy Today?

The title came to me on a flight from Winnipeg to Halifax in December 2007. I would have preferred an extra Diet Coke or cookies but the flight on WestJet left me with the question: If the plane crashed, would I die happy today?

This is not a theoretical question as I was a private pilot, took a plane from an incipient spin into a full spin, fell from about 4,000 feet, waited for my life to pass before my eyes – it didn’t happen – and I ended up with about 100 feet to spare from literally going six feet under. I often suppress this especially when I fly but at 53 it is time to unleash the learning.

I want this site to be useful to you – not to make you afraid of flying -and I also want it to function as a daily reminder…

If this was my last day would I die happy?

If the answer is yes, we are on track and doing well.

If the answer is no than we better figure out what we need to do.

By the way, happiness to me is not being some goofy looking yellow smiley face, it is a lot more complex than that.

We’ll get into that over the next year.

Photo Credit: Goundhog by http://flickr.com/photos/bluestonestudios/2235473238/

Filed Under: Die Happy Today

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David Zinger

Email: david@davidzinger.com
Phone 204 254 2130

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