Lacey Hall

Professor Gerald Giles

LE 1350-400
30 April 2016
Personal Life Philosophy
My own personal life philosophy is a simple one but encompasses many different things.
In the most simplistic of terms it is to be a good person and happiness will come. However, this
entails a lot for me personally and unfortunately it isnt as simple. For me to be a good person I
must treat other kindly, be honest, constantly strive to be a better person in mind, body, and soul,
do the best I can in my endeavors, take care of my health, be a good friend and family member,
dont do things that I would be ashamed of if others knew about it, show loyalty to those
deserving of it, allow myself rest and relaxation, being positive, dedicate time to my hobbies, and
more. However, this can be organized into four sections of life. 1. Sustaining Personal
Relationships 2. Value My Health (Both Mental and Physical) 3. Be Proud of Who You Are and
the Decisions You Make 4. Find a Lesson or Silver Lining in as many Circumstances as Possible.
All of these are to aid in discovering the happiness of life.
Sustaining Personal Relationships
In order to sustain personal relationships one must be present in time, energy, and
physicality. Not to take away time from oneself, but to spend time available with people whom
mean something to you; be it a boss, a significant other, a friend, a family member, a classmate,
etc. You need to put life into the relationships you have with individuals to maintain their
success. This includes treating others with kindness, effective communication, assisting them
when available, spending time with them when available, listening to them when available,

following through with your word or what was promised by you, commitment to them, be loyal
to them, and sharing your life with them. According to Debra Umberson in her article Social
Relationships and Health, Scientific evidence shows that involvement in social relationships
benefits health. Thus contributing to my second section of my Personal Life Philosophy.
Value My Health (Both Mental and Physical)
In order to achieve personal happiness I believe that your physical and mental health
needs to be in order to do so. With physical health exercise needs to be included on a regular
basis; preferably a minimum of 3 hours a week and a maximum of 6 hours a week. Things such
as walking, hiking, going to the gym, swimming, yoga, and more can be used for both physical
benefit and mental satisfaction. Furthermore, to guarantee that these hours of exercise are being
used to the fullest potential, an adequate amount of rest and relaxation are required to produce a
lasting result. A minimum of 7 hours of sleep a night and a set schedule of bedtime and the time
you wake up will make this a more achievable goal. In addition to both exercise and set amounts
of sleep, your diet needs to be nutritious and not in abundance of bad foods. Furthermore,
frequent and small nutritious snacks will encourage a metabolism boost and lasting energy. All of
these actions will assist in overall physical wellness. In regards to mental health, a positive
attitude and less negative self-talk will aid in overall well-being in both a physical and a mental
sense. In the article Measuring Changes in Negative and Positive Thinking in Patients With
Depression, it states, patients with depression who attended a CBT (Cognitive Behavioral
Therapy, used to change thinking patterns to a positive outlook) group displayed decreased
depressive symptoms. Thus proving the significance of positive thinking, so in addition to this,
allow yourself to let go of the things in the past and the things in which are above your control,
focus on the present and the moment you currently live in rather than putting all of your

happiness in the idea of a future accomplishment. As well as, expanding your knowledge and
mind by educational courses and readings and constant attention to your creative hobbies, i.e.
music, writing, sketching, choreographing, etc. Allowing your mind to be creative is a way of
ensuring its well-being. Lastly, on a daily basis tell yourself positive affirmations to assure
positivity and overall mental happiness.
Be Proud of Who You Are and the Decisions You Make
The third section focuses on self-esteem, self-worth, your actions, and your morals. I
recommend that one needs to act in a manner that would not embarrass you or leave you
ashamed if the eyes of the world were upon you. With this, honesty comes easy. When the
choices you make accurately reflect the person you are and you make choices in which you dont
care who knows about them it leaves you with a higher self-esteem. Having a high self-esteem
and recognizing your own self-worth and value will aid you in making choices in which you are
proud to have made and prevent you from making choices out of fear, insecurities, and jealousy.
When you are proud of your actions and your self-esteem is high because you recognize your
self-worth, establishing and maintaining your own personal morals and values comes easier to
you. It is essentially a circle of moving parts where each section relies on the other sections to
keep in motion. Once you find your way into this circle you must work on all parts to continue
moving forward. In accordance to Angela Brown, author of How to Be Proud of Yourself, she
suggests that you follow these seven steps,1. List your personal goals 2. Take care of your body
and personal appearance 3. Educate yourself 4. Make daily affirmations 5. Eliminate negative
thinking 6. Steer clear of negative people 7. Reward yourself for your accomplishments. I agree
that with all of these steps self-esteem and self-worth can be found and thus creating the way in

to this circular foundation that makes you a good example to those around you and a person in
which you are proud to be.
Find a Lesson or Silver Lining in as Many Circumstances as Possible
At times this seems to be an impossible feat. However, in my personal experience no
matter the situation or how bad it is there is often a lesson to be learned and sometimes if youre
lucky even a silver lining. To some these could be one in the same, to me a lesson may have
come as a hard realization and I wouldnt necessarily categorize it as a silver lining in all
circumstances. I see a silver lining as a unexpected bonus that comes along a bad situation. For
example, when someone you love passes away, it is literally devastating and life changing every
single time. However, often times you can learn valuable lessons within these life-altering
circumstances, i.e. to live your life to the fullest because you never know how long youve
actually got, dealing with coping with grief, etc. These are valuable life lessons. To me a silver
lining is more like having to pay your safety and emissions but having the confidence that the
vehicle youre driving is a safe one to be traveling in. With focus on these lessons in bigger or
more serious situations and silver linings in the small inconveniences of life, the things that can
easily impact your overall happiness can be turned into positive awareness gleaned. In Slotter
and Wards article, Finding the silver lining: The relative roles of redemptive narratives and
cognitive reappraisal in individuals emotional distress after the end of a romantic relationship,
it states,(its suggested) that . . . subjective interpretation of an event, rather than the event itself,
that leads to specific emotional reactions. Gleaning light on that how we interpret a life event
can impact the way we cope with it. Thus always finding a lesson or silver light resulting in an
overall happier state of being.

Conclusion
Although each of these four sections directly tie into one another, I find each deserve
their own separation due to the high importance each of them can hold in an individuals life. One
cannot necessarily thrive without the other, but each is fundamental in finding true happiness as a
human being. At least they are for me, that is way this is my personal life philosophy.

Bibliography
Brown, Angela. "How to Be Proud of Yourself." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 10
Dec. 2015. Web.
Forsyth, Diane Mcnally, Kathleen Poppe, Virginia Nash, Renato D. Alarcon, and Simon Kung.
"Measuring Changes in Negative and Positive Thinking in Patients With Depression."
Perspectives in Psychiatric Care 46.4 (2010): 257-65. Web.
Umberson, Debra. "Social Relationships and Health." Journal of Health and Social Behavior
51.1 (2010): n. pag. Web.
Ward, Deborah Elaine, Erica B. Slotter, and Courtney Walsh. "Following the 'silver Linings
Playbook': The Role of Redemptive Narratives in Individuals' Emotional Distress after
the End of a Romantic Relationship." PsycEXTRA Dataset (n.d.): n. pag. Web.
Williams, Mary E. Constructing a Life Philosophy. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven, 2005.
Print.