Introduction: A Great number of Laws
Most educated individuals have heard about God's laws (contentious, confusing, conflicting and confounding), regulations of Gravity, regulations of Thermodynamics, regulations of the Land, Parkinson's law, Murphy's law and so on. The majority are named after the writer of a succinct observation described by the law. Laws range between A (i.e., Aitken's law - describes how vowel length is conditioned by environment) to Z (Zipf's law - a linguistic observation that a few words are utilized often but the majority are used rarely).
Since the wellness field grows and evolves, perhaps it's time for a REAL wellness law-or many such laws. If that's the case, why not associate as many as possible with one's own name?
Grandiose, perhaps, but if I don't do it, somebody else surely will and see your face may just create a mess of it. Wellness in corporate America and elsewhere in the world is described and presented in wildly inappropriate and dysfunctional ways; why not eradicate the babble with a few transformative REAL wellness laws? Such laws, should they sound right and lead humanity to sounder thinking, might well contribute modestly to improved health and life outcomes.
By the way, one does not need to formulate a law that is named in his/her honor as well as be familiar with a law to be affected by and to reside relating with it. We've all complied with Galileo and Newton's laws about gravity, ahead of when we became aware of them.
Anyone who desires a law to bear his / her name should present some credentials. Mine are modest, simple but adequate for the honor. Around this writing, I have written 15 books, posted more than a lot of essays at Seekwellness.com/wellness, 74 eight to twelve-page hard copy wellness reports commencing in 1984, 657 weekly electronic REAL wellness newsletters, at the very least a lot of lecture presentations in a dozen countries while spending 43 years (since 1970) dreaming in regards to the ways to and odds of vastly improved environments and cultures for greater health and happiness.
All of which has resulted in this moment-the time when I provide universe Ardell's two laws of REAL wellness.
Ardell's 1st Law of REAL Wellness: Random Chance, Natural Selection and Contingencies Trump All Else
Life's largest events often follow random, seemingly inconsequential small actions of which we remain unaware.
Secular rational freethinkers place stock in knowledge, commitment, reason and persistence in shaping and fine-tuning lifestyle habits. We embrace perspectives and behaviors on matters existential and otherwise made to render positive states of enjoyment and well-being. We consciously seek happiness, freedom, physical fitness, love, mutually satisfying relationships and multiple skills. What matters most, what affects our successes and outcomes, appears pretty much to be under our field of control. Alas, this functional and preferred method of thinking is essentially illusory. You will find three much more consequential realities not under your influence in any way. Furthermore, these three factors render the standard and duration of your existence unpredictable and unknowable. They're: 1) random chance or fortune; 2) natural selection; and 3) contingencies.
Ardell's 2nd Law of REAL Wellness: In accordance with Ardell's 1st Law of REAL wellness, other REAL wellness laws don't total much.
Considering the immense black hole power of the very first law, additional such laws play a small role in efforts to shape life quality and longevity.
But, that doesn't obviate the case for added laws of REAL wellness. Truth be told that most of the eponymous laws on the books are useless to most people but are yet of interest and even helpful for a few. I'm in my eighth decade; I'm not aware of most occasions when I could have benefited from an awareness of Aitken's law or Zipf's law. I heard about neither until I started the investigation because of this essay. Ditto a lot of other laws.
In accordance with the first law above, this law and those that follow don't total much. Nevertheless, I hereby give you a few more, just the same. They can't hurt.
Ardell's 3rd Law of REAL Wellness: Finding your passion is okay but keep going-become great at it.
Since few folks enjoy royal lineage or handsome trusts that assure first-class travel in life with minimum importance of labor, we must choose trades of sorts to pay our way through life. Thus, we're smart to adopt a long-term goal of studying and laboring at a trade which will prove enjoyable and satisfying, along with properly remunerative.
When this challenge is met, your method of earning an income won't look like work.
Thus another law - master a passion. Start by following varied interests and, after years and years if not decades of trial and error, settle into one, immersing yourself in it.
Be somewhat realistic but guard against premature realism-while not anyone can get elected, be in the flicks or play in the NBA or NFL, a select few can. Focus about what excites talents and gifts. Devote the time needed to qualify for Carnegie Hall (i.e., practice, practice, practice-take account of Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours rule).
The goal here is that at some point in your career somebody, somewhere, for some great or strange reason, will probably pay you to complete that which you enjoy doing-because you're so spectacular at whatever it is you've honed to a degree of artful mastery.
Robert Frost expressed the notion of this law in his poem "Two Tramps in Mud Time:"
My goal in life is to unite my vocation
with my avocation.
As my two eyes make one in sight.
For only where love and need are one
And work is play for mortal stakes
Could be the deed ever really done
For heaven's and future's sake.
Ardell's 4th Law of REAL Wellness: More straightforward to chase after fun than to flee from pain.
Forget an ounce of prevention. Which could indeed be worth a pound of cure, but a good grain of REAL wellness may be worth a ton of prevention. Prevention is indeed old school-it's vintage medical thinking focused upon avoiding negative outcomes. Furthermore, there is no fun in working whilst not to see a negative outcome.
In place of preventing something, pursue very good results via proactive initiatives that amuse and satisfy. REAL wellness initiatives guided by reason, exuberance, athleticism and liberty are far more likely to be exciting and enjoyable. Such efforts will reinforce good intentions far more than holding out for negative states not to happen thanks to preventive strategies!
Naturally, SOME prevention is good. Birth control prevention is good, disease prevention is good-you get the idea.
Ardell's 5th Law of REAL Wellness: Scrutinize the role you played in any scene, good or bad, and make adjustments.
Make personal responsibility your default setting. Yes, initially it is easier, cheaper and easier the culprit, excuse, deny and/or ignore responsibility than to embrace it. Such are the current default settings in most cultures, including our own. In the long if not medium range, however, it is healthier, more satisfying and far better to assume at the very least some extent of responsibility. This method allows you to make adjustments independent of actions by others. Your personal actions are the surest steps to supporting your interests.
Ardell's 6th Law of REAL Wellness: Dead, bloated rhino equivalents are the staff of life.
All facets of REAL wellness aren't likely to be equally essential for everyone. We're all quite different in so many ways, though we're alike in lots of ways, as well. But, our circumstances, resources, capacities and the like vary significantly. Among the main elements for enjoying life ought to be the connection with plentiful, an active fascination with and life-long openness to new meanings and a commitment to and maintenance of an amazingly fit body.
Therefore, as well as mastering an awareness and acceptance of the fact of Ardell's 1st Law of REAL Wellness, create a point of always trying to appear on the bright side of life. DUI If the latter seems difficult, take comfort from the words expressed by the mother of Woody Allen's character in Annie Hall. Having just read that the universe is expanding, Allen's character laments that he's too worried to complete his homework. "Someday it'll break apart and that could be the end of everything."
"But," his Mother snaps, "you're here in Brooklyn! Brooklyn isn't expanding."
