One of my fondest childhood memories is sitting around the dinner table while my brother told his newest joke. He would start out with a serious tone as if to make sure he remembered every detail. I remember leaning forward ready to learn the joke so I could proceed to share it as well. It never quite worked out that way, however, because at some point my brother would get tickled. He would start to laugh and we would join in. Before long, all of us would be laughing without even knowing why. Laughter is contagious!
As you face the challenges of owning your business or advancing your career – keep the following on your to-do list: “Laugh heartily every day.” No wonder the good book says in Proverbs 17:22 — “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.”
Laughter benefits you in the following ways:
- Eases physical pain
- Gives you a cardio workout
- Opens up avenues of hope and possibilities
- Lift the weight of depression
- Banishes stress and the effects of cortisol on your system
- Lowers your blood pressure
- Boosts your immune system
- Tones your abs (when it’s a side-holding belly laugh)
- Protects you from chronic diseases
- Releases creativity
I easily forget the punch line of the jokes others tell, but I will never forget the warmth I experienced in laughing together with my family. My jokes may fall flat yet I can laugh every day. Many times the joke is on me – like the time that I wore two different shoes to work or responded in a silly way. Laughter releases you from the day-to-day grind and elevates your spirit to soar in new and exciting ways.
Make the commitment with me to laugh often, laugh heartily and laugh with a hope-renewing faith that the difficulties you encounter are temporary, the cranky people in your life can transform you and the best is yet to come.
So… have you heard the one about … Oh – I forgot the punch-line. It doesn’t really matter does it?
Karen Sebastian is an author, blogger, corporate trainer and gifted speaker who transparently shares the hope she has found in the darkest times of her life. She is a seasoned entrepreneur who founded HOPEpreneurs, a consulting firm dedicated to helping women succeed personally and professionally. Karen is known as The Hope Lady because she takes every opportunity to inspire hope by sharing her rich life experience with others – engaging them in adventurous discoveries of the beauty of hope in a dark, cloudy world.
HOPEpreneurs - Providing support and success strategies for women entrepreneurs 
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