I’m really just writing these down as they come to me – they really are in no particular order. But here is my second commandment:

2. Help others.

Everyone has those days where it just feels like everything is out to get them, right? I have days where it feels like I climb out of bed on the wrong side and it is just all downhill from there. Things go wrong, I get depressed, I suffer from lack of motivation… the list goes on. And lately, it doesn’t take much for me to get down in the dumps. There are a few things in my life currently that could easily get me down or make it hard to deal. But I’ve learned time and again from past experiences that there is one almost surefire way to get myself out of all my own crap – spend some time focusing on other people.

One of the best avenues I have in my own life to spend time helping or focusing on others is volunteering. I volunteer at Outreach, Inc. usually twice a month, and although I don’t always look forward to going there, almost every time I’m there is rewarding. It takes my mind off the things that are going wrong in my own life and makes me realize that I’m not the only one with problems. And usually – that my problems aren’t nearly as big as they tend to seem to me. And not only that, but somehow talking to the people there just has a way of lifting my spirits.

I’ve realized something about life… both the good times and the bad times can fall on a scale. At one end is the very worst thing that has ever happened to someone (don’t ask me what this is, I’m not sure I can even imagine it – nor do I want to!). At the other end is the very best thing to happen to someone (I don’t know what this either). But everything that happens in my life and your life (unless you happen to have had the very best or worst thing in the world happen to you) falls somewhere in the middle of that scale. So any given bad thing that happens to you – you know that something worse has happened to someone somewhere. And the same for good things – better things have happened to people. It’s all pretty relative.

For me, I know that I tend to have times where I get so lost in my own crap that I just get depressed. And one of the best ways to get out of that is to do something for someone else. Call a friend that you think might need someone to talk to. Check up on someone that you know has been going through a hard time. Say hi to someone you haven’t talked to in a while. Buy coffee for someone you know that’s been low on cash for whatever reason. Any of these things is a good step to taking your mind off of your own problems, and you’ll probably make someone else’s day in the process.