Watch someone perform a routine task with dedication and thoughtfulness to each step, and you feel like you are watching a dance. You become aware of their serenity, their happy mood at that moment.

You want that kind of joy, but how did they find it?  Simply doing your work is not enough.

The answer:  Create a source of joy by concentrating more fully on making each step of any project beautiful or imaginative.  This Daily Om captures the idea beautifully.

DailyOm.com

“Lives of Quiet Dedication
Capricorn Daily Horoscope

The dedication with which you pursue your goals may permeate other aspects of your life today. You may find that you are not simply interested in addressing your duties but also in making each project beautiful or imaginative. This new sense of discipline can drive you to devote yourself wholeheartedly to a variety of tasks you might once have deemed unimportant. Since you are likely concentrating more fully on individual obligations, simple tasks can become a source of joy. You may feel a distinct sense of pride in knowing that you have dealt with your responsibilities carefully and thoughtfully. Others may interpret your diligence as dependability today and offer you positions of authority or greater recompense for your efforts as a result.

When we afford the same level of devotion to mundane survival matters that we do to our obligations, we create lives suffused with value and brilliance. Though we can sustain our bodies with bland foods, preparing and consuming meals that tantalize the senses enable us to invite pleasure into our daily routine. We can ensure that life is always stimulating and inspiring by addressing each of our day’s tasks with care and thoughtfulness. There is joy to be had in approaching duty with a dedicated heart as many activities become far more gratifying and rewarding when we concentrate diligently upon them. With discipline, work and play become sweeter. As you cultivate dedication within yourself today, you will discover the joy inherent in hard work, meticulousness, and creativity.” (Not bolded in original content.)

This is a keeper, as many Daily Oms turn out to be.  The wisdom and peace that comes from receiving these daily is wonderful.  I look forward to them each morning, and keep many of my favorites.  I even share them with my children, as motivational pieces.

I highly recommend Daily Om by email for everyone.  Its the morning motivator that gets me off on the right foot.

Daily Om by email is specially good for preteens, teens, graduates and college students.  For those with raging hormones, its like a lighthouse in the fog leading them back to peace and sanity.  But then so is cooking.

Get your free Daily Om by email now.

Here’s what I tell my children:

• Cooking begins with attitude.  Approach cooking with attention and thoughtfulness to each step, to make it special, and you will find joy in cooking.

• Think of those who will eat the food as you cook. Meditate on your love for them as you prepare each step.  Infuse the food with your love and it will taste even  better.

What advice do you give your kids on creating happiness in their lives?