Jared Akers

What Everybody Ought to Know About Action vs. Intention

by Jared Akers

We are judged by our actions, not our intentions.

For years, I was a great guy. Always thinking of others—buying flowers for a girlfriend, donating items to charity, buying something I saw at the mall just knowing my friend would love it—but seldom would I follow through with action. I was too busy changing the world. I’ll get the flowers next time or tell my friend I was thinking about them while at the mall. I was the nicest guy I knew.

Thinking the right thing and doing it are two different things. Humans cannot read minds.

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9 Ways to Get the Funk Outta Here!

by Jared Akers

I can be selfish with my time. After all, I’m busy. Graduate school, work, writing, family, etc. One thing I have found however, that after long periods of being selfish with my time, I get into a funk. I may think I’m being helpful and unselfish, but holding the elevator at work does not count.

The funk may be hard to categorize, which means it’s impossible to put a finger on the cause. Am I restless because I have a ton of homework to do this week? Am I afraid of losing something? Is there something I think I want that I’m not getting?

Regardless of the cause, I have discovered a few ways of relieving the funk and get back into happiness. These actions always work—except when they don’t. However, one thing I always know, this too shall pass. [Read more…]

What Is Love to You?

by Jared Akers

My wife said something a few weeks ago that put love in a new perspective for me. Her mother was killed when she was 20 years old; she said, “After my mother died, nothing in life was ever as good as it could be. Don’t get me wrong, things are good and even great, but when something great happens to you, the first person you want to share it with is your mother.”

That is what my relationship with my wife Emily is like. It’s about sharing the little things that makes life so grand.

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What's Up With Jared? May 3, 2009

by Jared Akers

Hello everyone. I just wanted to post a message letting everyone know what’s going on with my life and the future of How to Be Happy.

Yesterday I started my LAST class (Strategic Management) for my MBA program. The class runs six weeks with the last day of class on June 12th. I can’t believe my teammates and I are almost there!

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How to eliminate fear

by Jared Akers

Most fear is an illusion. False Evidence Appearing Real. The things that I fear are created in my mind. Most often, they are based in fear of loosing something I have, or not getting something I think I want. I stress the word think here… more often than not, what I want is not what I need. In learning how to be happy, it’s important to be able to determine the difference.

“Fear knocked at the door and faith answered. No one was there.” -Old English Proverb Click to Tweet

Fear is natural, it is meant to keep me safe. The majority of times, however, my fear is unjustified. Why? Because I fear something that has not, or may not even happen. Which is a valuable tool and lesson I learned when getting over my fear of public speaking. The fear may be based on a past experience that I’m projecting as the possible outcome of a current one. Due to unrealistic expectations, I feared the outcome because it was not what I wanted. Or at least thought I wanted… but it has always been what I needed. I just have to let it take me to where I’m supposed to be.

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