Balance – University of Life

Ephemeral Art

by Shaun Roundy

This summer, people started building crazy cairns (rock piles that mark a trail) all along the bike trails in the mountain foothills above my home.

At first they would simply gather rocks and stack them tall; then as months wore on, they grew more elaborate. I started adding sticks for arms and turning them into cairn men. Sometimes others would remove the sticks or knock over the piles, but someone else would always rebuild them.

Now summer has passed, most of the leaves have dried up and dropped from the sky, and despite a long, gorgeous autumn, the snow can’t be too far away. I’ll still run the trails, but the cold won’t let me linger the way I’ve enjoyed for so many months.

Thanks to the change of seasons, every time I pass a cairn, I think about how ephemeral this world is – nothing is built to last. The only thing that will ever endure is the fleeting moment of “now,” and that truth ought to affect your perspective and priorities. Read more “Ephemeral Art” →

Depression is Simple

by Shaun Roundy

Here’s the simplest & most helpful explanation of depression you’ll ever read:

Depression happens when life tips too far away from the light for too long, and your heart and mind take a partial vacation.

Depression is a safety valve, like when you turn on too many appliances in your home and blow a fuse. If your system didn’t partially shut down, your overloaded circuits would have experienced a worse melt down later on. Read more “Depression is Simple” →

Podcast: The 4 Standards

by Shaun Roundy

Here’s a new podcast introducing The 4 Standards and how to balance your life in 30 seconds per day:

Prefer audio only? Here ya go:

The Secret to Keeping your New Year’s Resolutions

by Shaun Roundy

It’s that time of year again! Time to pretend that next year will turn out different than all the other years before it. “This year,” we promise ourselves, we’ll stick to our resolutions, get in shape, stop smoking, get that new job…and then, we know – we just KNOW it, then we will be happy. Then life will be good.

Well? It’s true! You will be happier and life will be better. Or rather, life would be better if you actually kept working at your goals.

Sorry to tell you the bad news, but the other part is probably not true – you will not keep your resolutions this year any better than you ever have before. Next year will end up pretty much like this one except that we’ll all be another year older.

Unless.

Unless you learn one little tiny lesson that changes everything. Read more “The Secret to Keeping your New Year’s Resolutions” →

The Simple Things

by Shaun Roundy

The latest tech gadgets are cool, thrilling adventures are exciting, and physical pleasures can be satisfying, but sometimes the simple things – a walk on the beach or nap in the sun – are exactly what you need to restore balance to your life. Here’s a simple video to remind you of that fact…

If you’re unhappy and you know it…

by Shaun Roundy

Do you ever wish life was happier? Yes? Well good news – your wish is about to come true!

IF you cooperate, that is.

Here’s the deal: life is many things. It’s hard. It’s short. It’s confusing. It’s also good, full of opportunities, and open to your input.

What that means is that you have a lot more power over how your life turns out than you knew.

For example, did you know that happiness is a choice?

Yeah, okay, maybe it’s not like you can shout, “I choose happiness!” and suddenly your fairy godmother appears, brings you a prince/ss, and you live happily ever after, but if you really seriously choose happiness, then it will begin to change your life and you will become happier.

It’s a scientific fact. It’s all about how you train your brain. Here’s how: Read more “If you’re unhappy and you know it…” →

Slow Down!

by Shaun Roundy

Modern life moves quickly and it’s difficult to escape its gravity! Unfortunately, there’s something lost in the slower pace of the past. It’s up to YOU to to slow it down now and then!