One of the most feel good thoughts that I return to again and again is the idea that there is no failure only feedback. On of the difficulties that people experience is that they are so afraid to fail that they do not do anything because they are paralyzed with fear. The thought that not getting something right the first time or discomfort are all part of the natural course of life is a very helpful thought to have.
Another thought that causes me to feel good is something that I read in Carl R Rogers' book. In those Rogers suggests contrary to the Freudian notion that at bottom we are base ids all selfishly pursuing our own end we possess an 'organismic rationality' that inclines towards advancement, maturity and sociability.
Another thought that I return to when I needs a lift is the palliative effect of nature. Near my home there are hospital grounds which are covered in trees and there is an arrangement of rocks where people sit and have coffee I presume. In nature one can think that particular natural phenomena have existed before and will exist long after our problems.
Another idea, this time from Rogers again, that is helpful to me is the notion of viewing all people as units of inherent worth and dignity. The problem with the Purely Freudian and coldly analytical model of looking at people is that it leaves no room to experience the other person's potential and leaves no room to actually be there with the person at that particular moment. I like to think of it as being a bit like the Heisenberg uncertainty principle which states that you cannot know the speed and position of an electron at the same time except in this instance it is you cannot be there with the person experiencing at the same time as treating them as a series of mental phenomena of which you can work out the causal roots.
Other ideas that I get from Rogers are that I need not be anxious about difficulties in the way that I constantly ruminate about what may happen in the future. I take from Rogers that all of the things that I need to approach problems is contained in the moment in which I have to deal with and experience those difficulties. Also I learn that I can place a trust in my own feelings and experiences in that moment as things that will bring me in the right allbeit spontaneous direction.
I also take from Rogers that there is something inherently valuable and worthy in the way that I directly experience the world. The way of perceiving that is sometimes thought of as a problem also can be the source of the most inspired creativity. I also take that I must accept myself and other people and this means that I no longer label things that I do that are unsavoury as being instances of 'not me'.
Another idea that makes me feel good is a feeling that I sometimes feel that we are passing tests in areas of life that we don't even know we are passing. We definitely seem to recognize all of the tests that we fail in life be they academic, social or otherwise but we do not seem to see a whole lot of ones that we pass that just pass us by. Also there are so many different areas in which there are tests. The tests do not just exist in a few areas that we think of as big areas. They exist in all areas.
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