Don’t react out of anger

“In your anger do not sin.” – Ephesians 4:26.

Don’t act when you’re angry, as you are far more likely to do something you will regret. If you say something or do something, guess what? You can’t take it back. Don’t potentially ruin a relationship, a career, or a life by acting out of anger. Control yourself. Understand your emotions. Come back and address it once you’ve had time to calm down and think about it in a reasonable way.

Setting an example

“Great dads know that they are setting the example for just about everything in their child’s life. How to handle adversity. How to be a friend. How to treat those less fortunate. How to succeed with humility. How to care for the people you love. How to be a good parent.” – From Daily Dad (the creators of The Daily Stoic)

Think about that everyday. How are you acting? Would you want your kids to see that and emulate you? Are you throwing an adult tantrum when things don’t go your way? Are you pouting? Are you mean?

Show your kids how to act and speak with dignity, how to apologize when they’re wrong, how to stand up for themselves, how to control their emotions. Be the best version of yourself for you, but also for them. Because you are teaching them how to respond in these situations, whether you think they’re looking or not…

Is it the world or is it how you view the world?

“The world’s apparent chaos is only a reflection of our own inner turmoil.” – Michael Gerber

The problem isn’t the world. It’s us. Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. Are you going to react poorly? Are you going to let your emotions get the best of you? Control yourself. Control your responses. If you can’t do that, you are just a grown up, older child. Be mature and don’t act on impulse.

Choose your mood

“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” – Abraham Lincoln

Have you ever noticed something that triggers one person and puts them in “a mood” for the rest of the day, but a similar event has no affect on a different person? Why is that?

It seems like some people are predisposed to being angry at the smallest things – letting everything around them affect how they’re feeling at that moment. But it really doesn’t have to be that way. In most cases, it only takes a mindset shift to live a happier, less stressful life. Obviously there are things that happen to us that are very serious. Thinking positively doesn’t necessarily make the situation all better, but it’s still the better choice to make rather than dwelling on the negative. Regardless of how do you think about the situation, you probably can’t control those outside events and you can’t change the past. But you can control how you respond to them.

Choose to be happy and see the good in every situation. Why would you want to choose to be anything other than happy?