An Interesting Life
“If you want to be interesting, be interested" -Paul Arden
I came across a quote by author Henry Miller that I thought I'd share this month. He said, "Develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music – the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself." In one way it's a complex quote and in another it's quite simple. Let's look more closely at it.
One of the first things that struck me was the phrase, "Develop interest in life as you see it…" One of the things that fascinates me is how important our perception is to our experience. If you perceive the world as an interesting place, you will find it to be an interesting place. If you perceive it as being dull and the "same old, same old", you will find it to be so. A dandelion in your yard can either be good or bad. If you focus upon the bad, you will be afraid the flower will spread throughout your lawn and overtake it. If you focus upon the good, you may see how beautifully intricate and cheerfully yellow the flower is. (You may even test yourself to see if you like butter or not.) Success tip number one: when thinking about situations, recognize that, as Shakespeare said, "Nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so."
The same phrase contains another point I want to emphasize: "Develop interest in life as you see it…" 'Develop' indicates that you need to take an active role in life to find it interesting. I'm sure that you, like me, at times find yourself looking at your world only to find boredom and ennui. At other times, you may examine it and find it fascinating and "throbbing with rich treasures." It's the same environment, only the way you look at it is different. Fortunately, as Miller explains, you can have an active role in the process. Success tip number two: Make a conscious choice to find the richness in the world.
Another important part of taking an active role in finding interest in the world is being willing to accept new things in your life. Considering and accepting new ideas, projects and people may seem to be risky, especially if you believe you are happy going along the way you are now. Although it may be easy to settle into a comfortable routine, it is also a sort of spiritual death. There is no reward without risk. Inviting the new and untested into your life will help you discover parts of the world that are "…simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people." Success tip number three: embrace a bit of risk by doing new things, going to new places and meeting new people
Several years ago, I decided to try something completely new. I had been an active member in an internet forum for people with an interest in pirates and pirate re-enacting for several years. One group of re-enactors met in Key West in November every year so I made it my goal to be a part of that. I chose a role which involved research and technical elements since these threads weave through many of my favorite activities. That was the role of the ship's surgeon. I didn't know the first thing about surgery, I didn't have the proper clothing and I only knew the people as names on the internet. Still, I trusted that I could learn and make it come together. When I arrived in Key West that November, I met a new group of fascinating people and friends, had a great time and learned a great deal. (You can read my account of it here.) Success tip number four: for best results when beginning a new adventure, start in an area of interest and push your boundaries out to embrace the new and untried.
When I got involved in pirate re-enacting, I really did meet "beautiful souls and interesting people." At first I thought this was because the folks I met had chosen such an interesting activity. Because these folks were so interesting, I continued to write accounts of events, often focusing on the people I met. Pirate re-enactments are pretty loosely structured; new people attend each event and this provides more material. However, as I have thought about why the people were so interesting, I began to recognize that part of the reason was because I was interested. I began to apply this idea to other people I knew (or thought I knew) in other areas of my life and found that most people are fascinating. They had always been so, but I had never noticed. Success tip number five: to make the people around you more interesting, be open and interested in them.
This brings us to the last sentence of Miller's quote. "Forget yourself." It is so simple, and yet so important. Some of the most unhappy people I have met have been interested mainly in themselves. In fact, the more interested they were in themselves, the more unhappy they seem to be. I once read about an experiment a couple tried. They invited some friends over and made a choice not to talk about themselves, but to let their guests talk as much as they wanted. The hosts learned a great deal about their guests and found them to be very interesting people. As their guests were leaving at the end of the evening, they heard the man say to his wife, "What fascinating conversationalists they were. We must have dinner with them again soon." Success tip number six: to enjoy an interesting life, forget yourself and you will find life to be "simply throbbing with rich treasures."
Have a great month!
