About Love: How to Love

How to Love

It is my opinion that most people become uncomfortable when they have to share about love. This may be because there are so many opinions on how to love that people are afraid they their opinion is the wrong opinion. As a result, people often clam up when it comes to giving advice or opinions about what love is. Consequently, some of the golden nuggets about love and how to love have gone unnoticed and unclaimed. The purpose of this blog is to notice and reclaim those nuggets.

Expressions of love can be simple and easy. Sometimes we get caught up in making an expression of love overly grand. Twelve dozens of roses is a wonderful thing, but it's neither simple nor easy necessarily. Sometimes, a small note to a loved one will cause the same stir of emotions. Often stating the positive things that you admire about a significant other is what helps them through a difficult day. And often, oh so often, the gift of a single piece of chocolate does the trick. We can learn how to love through simple and effective expressions. And the smiles, hugs, and kisses we receive in return keep the cycle of love turning.

A Little Love Goes a Long Way When We Realize What’s Simple About Love!
Sound off and Comment! How do you keep love simple?

AJ's 30 Second Rule

About Love

It is really easy to come to work and not take notice of people. Yes, most of us come to work slightly disgruntled with a single mission and purpose: "To tolerate the hours ahead so that I can get back home!" And a few lucky ones out there love their job so much that they spend more time at work then at home. However, love it or hate it, disgruntled or overly cozy, it is really effortless to over look our coworkers. The overly cozy perceive coworkers as close family. So close in fact that sometimes they may forget to say hello or good morning. And the disgruntled, well the disgruntled are so tightly focused on getting back home that they often walk through the work day with blinders on!

So...AJ's 30 second rule. Depending on the size of your work environment, try to spend 30 seconds with everyone that you can. A simple, "Hey, how was your weekend!?!" will often do the trick. It is just enough time spent to connect to your coworkers, and gain their trust and loyalty. This communicates interest, care, and love. As a result, people will perceive you differently, and you might begin to be a bit less disgruntled. And for the overly cozy, AJ's 30 second rule helps you never forget a key element to making work so pleasurable. And if you do not get the opportunity to spend at least 30 seconds with everyone in day, don't feel bad. Over the course of a week, in most cases, you will have reached everyone!

A Little Love Goes a Long Way when you spend a little time!

Give AJ's 30 Second Rule a try...Comment! Let me know how it works for you!

I'm Sorry and I Love You

A Lesson in

How to Love

It is so interesting how hard it is for us as a species to say "I'm Sorry" or "I Love You." These two very powerful expressions of emotion have started and saved relationships throughout the centuries. But these two very powerful expressions of emotion, for some reason, are reserved internally to the degree that their utterance can stop a crowd. I would guess that the vulnerability that ensues when we say I'm Sorry" or "I Love You" is what makes it so difficult to say. It's the state of emotional nakedness that we submit ourselves to when we use these words that is so awkward. And especially, in public, most of us do not like to be naked.

However, when we open ourselves up to these emotions, and express them in actions and in words, we seem to always feel better, our heart pours out, and that burdened feeling is lifted. I am not sure that many of us regret telling someone "I'm Sorry" or "I Love You," even when the sentiment is unrequited. In fact, the last expression of many people as they are facing death is that they regret not saying "I'm Sorry" or "I Love You" enough in life. And not only do we feel better when we use these expressions, but it changes us, it changes the situations we are in, and changes the people that what say it to. And in the end, life is lived that much sweeter.

A Little Love Goes a Long Way when we I'm Sorry or I Love You. Make a commitment and start saying it more! Comment!

Love, Gratitude, and Meaning Thank You

Love Is

Some of the dads that I know took the time to share with me the particulars of their Father's Day 2011. I had the pleasure of hearing a range of stories from breakfast in bed to a surprise vacation. It was refreshing to hear these stories because they all reflected a sense of love and gratitude for "Dad." This implies that these dads were good ones! Way to go Gentlemen!

But what was even more amazing was hearing these men speak of the gratitude and love they have for their families. So it so often seems, men might not be the best of the two genders at outwardly expressing emotions and feelings. Lots of men have been told that they need to understand how to better show love. However, it does not mean that those emotions and feelings are nonexistent. And the types of emotions and feelings that they expressed to me reaffirmed that showing love and gratitude through a simple manifestation of love such as breakfast in bed, or washing someone's car for them, puts even the toughest guy in a different frame of mind. Love is viral. And a day that honors a group or a person often promotes that person or group to express love, and keeps our focus on and about love.

The cherry on top of this sundae of love and gratitude was how many of these men said Thank You to their families. One dad proclaimed, "I had to look at my wife directly in her eyes so that she understood that I was really meaning thank you when I said thank you. This time, I actually meant thank you!" This was all promoted from a simple expression of love, and helps create a "cycle" of love being expressed within a family or between a couple.

There is no mystery in how to show love to others. I think we just need reminders and help along the way. Whether it takes national days of recognition, or, simply coming home to your loved ones, we need reminders. And these reminders bring us that much closer.


A Little Love Goes a Long Way When We Take Time to Recognize Others

Share your experiences! Comment!

About Love

Kids: A Little Love Goes a Long Way When They Do Wrong

About Love

If you have children like I do then you have come to the realization that they may not always do things that we would approve of.  Recently, my daughter tested the very fibers of my patience by playing leapfrog between the family couch, the love seat, "Daddy's" recliner, and the ottoman. She knows well that there is an expectation that most furniture is not to be played on.  Although I was able to identify this, in the moment, all I could see is another trip to the emergency room, stitches, and lots of tears coming if she continued her furniture conquest. All I could feel is disappointment of rule breaking and the panic of knowing my child might be hurt.

My first intuition was to yell and reprimand. Luckily, I was able to catch myself this time (I'm working on it). Instead, I remembered that A Little Love Goes a Long Way when we break the rules. So, I tried something new this time. After I physically caught her mid-air froggy hop between the couch and love seat I calmly told her a story about how I one day broke a house rule when I was "about her age." Instead of focusing how I felt when I was caught breaking the rule, I focused on how my father felt when he caught me breaking the rule. I spoke of how I disappointed him and hurt his feelings. How much we wanted me to be safe, healthy, and in one piece. How much he loved me! After telling my story, she gave me a big hug and apologized. I was amazed and I think so was she! I realized that a simple manifestation of love when a person does wrong goes a long way. It provided reflection, forgiveness, and acceptance.

A Little Love Goes a Long Way When They Do Wrong

Give it a try and Comment! Let me know how it works for you! And, post any similar positive strategies about love you have found effective.

Three Calls of Love

About Love

It is amazing how easy it is these days to get caught up in all the drama and responsibilities of the world. And a natural consequence of doing so is that we lose touch with loved ones. A close friend, sibling, or cousin that you are normally in touch with frequently becomes an "Oops" or "Oh I forgot!" before you know it. And although it may be our heart's desire to extend love through frequent check-ins, on the practical end, it's hard to at times. So this week, dedicate your heart to contacting THREE people that you have not connected with in a while. I don't, by any means, suggest your high school sweetheart. Rather, those you have been close to, but have started to drift from. Make the calls, and you and they will feel a lot better! And...its how to love!

A Little Love Goes a Long Way when you reconnect!

Place the three calls ASAP! Comment! Let me know how it works for you!