The best things in life are not things at all. Indeed, the best things in life are intangible in nature. They include: Love for family and friends Peace Health Tranquility Knowledge Memories Experiences Comfort Security  Let me put it this way: When you're in your dead bed, are you going to be thinking about your huge flat screen TV or sporty car? Perhaps you'll have to if you're drawing up a will in your final hours. But other than that, why even bother thinking of them if you can't take them with you? This certainly runs contrary to what we're taught at an early age: That life should be about pursuing the biggest and best money can buy. Sadly, it isn't until very late into their lives that they realize this was all a crock.  I'm not saying one can't have nice things; after all, we work our butts off, so we might as well treat ourselves occassionally.  But regarding materialism as central to your happiness is taking...

Can you guess what holds many people back from fulfilling their potential and leading a happy life? It's none other than their past. In the worst cases, the past can be a heavy anchor that pins us down, holds us back, and impedes our growth. People perceive their past differently, sometimes depending on how things are going for them in the present.  If things are not that great right now, they may view their past quite favorably, always lamenting that they wish things could be as they were in the "good old days." Then there are those who find it difficult to move past bad experiences. For example, those who went through a bad break-up might become paranoid about entering into a new relationship, turning down opportunities to go out with ostensibly promising suitors. They vow to never trust or give their heart to anyone again.  But we can never be truly happy unless we learn to let go of the past. The more you allow the past to paralyze or hau...

Have you noticed how we come to value a moment or experience more fondly in hindsight than we do when we're actually experiencing it? In fact, sometimes we may experience an event we find unpleasant at the moment, only to realize later -- perhaps when comparing it to other situations occurring before or after -- that it wasn't all that bad? This can happen for two reasons: 1. We take the present moment for granted. Perhaps because we're too busy dwelling on the past or worrying about the future, we fail to appreciate and live in the moment. Study after study shows that we're happiest when we're focused on the present. 2. We look back on the past through rose-colored glasses.  Perhaps the experience really wasn't as titillating as our memories of it might lead us to think. That's because, when reminiscing about the past, human beings have a tendency to filter out the bad stuff, leaving only the Kodak moments we tend to capture in pictures. Never...

Let go of the past. Let go of your regrets. Take stock of your life and focus on the here and now. The past is the past. The future shines ever so bright! You shouldn't regret your mistakes so long as you learned from them. Sometimes, our biggest failures end up being precisely what we need to grow as individuals. Don't let them impede your progress. Don't allow them to obstruct your path toward bigger and better things. Life goes on. Keep your head up. Stay positive. As hard as it may seem right now, things will get better. And just because you had a bad experience -- whether a relationship that went sour or a short-lived job that didn't fit your skills or temperament -- doesn't mean history is bound to repeat itself. Things can get better. Things will get better. Such experiences sharpen our judgment. The most painful experiences, in fact, supply us with the most strength and fortitude. Shed your mind of negative thoughts -- ones that do nothing ...

Whatever you do, don't harp on the past . Reminiscing is good, but only up to a point. If you find yourself stuck in the past rather than focusing on present and future goals, you're only inhibiting your growth.  Sure, we all have moments where we reflect on happier times in our life and say, "I almost miss those days." But we are prone to such thinking when faced with challenges in the present that drag us down. But why not tweak your thinking and reason that once you surmount those challenges, you'll be even happier -- and feel more accomplished -- than you did in the past? Then there are those of us who ruminate on bad experiences in the past -- a close friend inexplicably stabbing us in the back, a significant other we envisioned ourselves being with our whole lives suddenly proclaiming their need for space and effectively ending the relationship, an outstanding job opportunity that slipped through our fingers. But brooding over the past i...

When you ask people what they might use to reminisce about the past, most will point to pictures they might have stashed away in their attic or garage. But I think music and movies can also serve to take us back in time, both of which are pretty easy to retrieve nowadays via the internet. Whenever I watch movies or listen to songs from my childhood, it transports me back to the time they were originally released. I ask myself questions like: How old was I when this song or movie was out? Did I watch the movie in the theater? Was I with my parents? With friends? Where would the song be played? On the radio? At school dances? Who else around me liked it? I realize some people might regard those details as minutiae, especially those who couldn't care less about the past or for one reason or another wish to put it behind them.  Another reason why I am so fond of music and movies from those years? I find them to be superior to the ones of today.  It seems the cont...

I certainly do. A feeling of "college nostalgia" has come over me of late, and I'm trying to figure out why. I graduated close to 8 years ago. The last 2 or 3 years have been quite eventful to say the least. I bought a new car, got married, traveled on a plane for the first time, and purchased a condo that my wife and I recently moved into.  If there's so much going on, why can't I help but reflect on my college years? I think most of us would agree that life was a whole lot simpler back when we were in college. Our main priority was studying to get good grades in hopes of landing a good job upon graduation.  That's not to say we didn't work while going to school (I worked part-time), but we probably didn't have as many bills to pay and, for most of us, marriage and children didn't pop up on our radar screen until after we received that diploma. Hence, having less responsibility was certainly a huge plus.  I miss the flexibi...

History is my second favorite subject to read and learn about (after psychology). While I love to delve into such topics as the Founding Fathers and Civil War, I also like looking back on key events and milestones in my own life -- my "life's history," if you will. I think it's important to take a little time every so often to reflect on your life and ponder the ways in which you've grown as a person over the last 2, 5, even 10 years. It's hard to believe that this year marks the 10-year anniversary of my wife and I hooking up. As a way to commemorate the milestone, I've been looking at albums that contain pictures taken in 2005, as well as listening to songs on my iPod that came out and were popular at that time. The early years of our relationship coincided with my final 2 years in college, so Iately I have been having flashes of myself walking to class and studying for exams. I think we're always more likely to reflect fondly on even...