In the past many have traveled the seven seas.  My seven “C’s” are a little different.  They are a helpful set of principles that each begin with the letter “C” that guide me to fulfillment and wellness.

1)     Connect – By connecting with the people and projects that matter most to you, you create an emotional atmosphere at home, at work, and wherever else you go.  Connecting with others is also the best way to reduce worry.  It is fine to worry, just try never to worry alone.  Our lives sometimes seem like the river, wandering to the west, the south, back toward the east, seemingly without direction at all.  Yet we can take comfort in this thought, for, like the river, we are always headed in the direction we are meant to go.  Without trying, without knowing, we are part of the larger pattern of things, and we nourish many others just by passing through their lives.

2)    Control –  Control you technology.  If you don’t control your technology, your e-mails, voice mails, cell phone, etc. will control you.  Develop a system that works for you – when you take calls, how you prioritize e-mails, and so on.

3)    Cancel – People and organizations add activities, but they rarely subtract.  It may seem difficult at first, but if you get in the habit of canceling what doesn’t really matter, you’ll be amazed how liberated you feel and how much more energy you have.  Try to think of at least one activity, meeting or event you can cancel right now.  Pare down your life to its best.  Learn to say “I just can’t.”  And if someone really pushes you or makes you feel guilty, say “I just really can’t.”

4)    Create – We are the sculptors of our day.  We can mold it creatively into a wonderful masterpiece.  We control the amount of moisture we mix into our clay.  We pound it, shape it, stroke it, and  love it.  Others can offer suggestions and we gain new perspectives from their advice, but it is finally our own creation.  Our knife may occasionally slip, or our mixture of earth may be too dry.  And great artist suffers temporary setbacks.  Besides, imperfections in art often make it all the more interesting.

5)    Care – Decide what you care most about.  You do not have time for everything you care about, so you must prioritize.  If you don’t do this consciously, you will do it unconsciously simply because what you care about exceeds the time you have to devote to each item on your list.

6)    Cultivate – Cultivate your lilies and discard your leeches.  To do this you must take a fearless inventory of your life.  What do you want to do more of?  What do you want to do less of?  Figure that out; then do it.

7)    Comfort – Home is a place of comfort.  When we go away and have to adjust to a different bed and someone else’s cooking, we quickly discover how comfortable our own home is.  Comfort in a home is more than just a familiar bed and favorite food, it is something we can give to each other.  We can make home a place where we can relax and be ourselves without fear of rejection.  Each of us needs a special little place where we can come and seek refuge from the world, our own little fort.  Children are often busy making forts, but all of us in the family need to work at making the place where we live together a fort where we can all gather for rest.