Shadonna Richards - Think & Be Happy: 365 Empowering Thoughts to Lift Your Spirit

Shadonna Richards

Copyright 2009 by Shadonna Richards

Praise for Think and Be Happy

"I love this great new book... Shadonna has searched and found the secret of happiness and is sharing it with us in this valuable book....This is a perfect book to buy for a friend because you will be helping to spread happiness to the ones you love. "

~Lionel Ketchian, author of Food for Thought and founder of the Happiness Clubs

Written with humor and wisdom, Shadonna Richards has produced a book that is both fun to read and loaded with techniques for helping all of us achieve true, deep, lasting happiness."

~Bob Nozik, MD, Co-founder of the American Happiness Association and author of Happy 4 Life

Shadonna Richards provides us a book full of empowering messages to find inner-peace, relaxation and happiness...

~Irene Watson, book reviewer, Reader Views

Shadonna Richards has discovered the elusive secret to finding inner-peace and happiness. In Think and Be Happy , she shares the fullness of the discovery...

~Yvonne Blackwood, author of Into Africa, a personal journey

Shadonna Richards shares her words of wisdom in a way that will have you telling your friends to get their own copy...We need more books like this one!

~Catherine Pulsifer, editor, www.WOW4U.com

Think &

Be Happy

365 Empowering Thoughts

To Lift Your Spirit

Shadonna Richards, B.A. (Psych)

Copyright 2009 by Shadonna Richards

A ll rights reserved . No part of this book shall be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, magnetic, photographic including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

Note: The suggestions expressed in this book are in no way to be considered a substitute for consultation with a licensed physician or psychologist. Any use of the recommendations in the following pages is at the readers discretion and sole risk.

Unattributed quotations are by Shadonna Richards.

This book is dedicated with love to Solomon,

the happiest person I know.

And to anyone who wants to be happy.

About the Author

Shadonna Richards is the USA Today bestselling author of 25 novels and 2 non-fiction titles: Count Your Blessings and Think & Be Happy: 365 Empowering Thoughts to lift your spirit (An Amazon Kindle #1 Bestseller in Meditation and Self-Help/Motivation) . She has sold over a half million copies of her books. She firmly believes in the power of love and the power of happiness. She also has a B.A. degree in Psychology. Shes a proud mommy and lives with her husband and son.

Acknowledgments

With the deepest gratitude, I wish to thank You, God, for Your divine guidance, the gift of life, providing me the ability to write so that I can share my stories with others and for everything Ive been blessed with in my life. To my cherished wonderful son and husband for your unconditional love. With gratitude to my wonderful family, friends, and readers for your endless support.

Dear Reader,

Welcome to the next phase of your happiness journeya journey about feeling good about who you are regardless of your situation. I have to be honest, over the years, I have become what you would call an incurable optimist, but this journey has not been an easy one. Through many tribulations and challenges, Ive learned that happiness is an internal resource. Thus, it is our thoughts that make our life what it iswhatever we dwell ongood or badbecomes our life. So, I made the conscious decision to focus and direct my mental energies on healthy thoughts and positive perceptions.

Like you, I kept searching for happiness only to realize, like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, that what I was looking for, I had it all along. Within. Thats the beauty of it all, there is so much we are capable of doing. As a teacher and a student of positive thinking/psychology, I wish to share my research from lessons learned, articles Id written as a journalist, and in my professional experience as a nurse who works with cancer patients with you in my second book, Think and Be Happy.

This book is a collection of short, empowering messages to boost your spirit and serve as a quick reminder to make happiness your goal every day of the year.

Having studied the great thinkers of our time and earning my first degree in psychology, it only seemed like a natural progression. Ive had an advantage in that my wonderful mother started me on the pathway to positive thinking as a child when she encouraged me to read Dr. Norman Vincent Peales The Power of Positive Thinking. Wow, what a life changing experience! Ive always wondered why some who have less and experience adverse conditions can be more content and at peace within, while others who have plenty feel they could never be happy, are lacking spiritually or are waiting for something else or someone else to provide them with joy. The latter is a type of happiness that rarely lasts. It has to come from within.

We are quite capable of servicing our own livesif only wed give ourselves the credit. While working on this book, I couldnt help but notice a higher level of euphoria that washed over my spiritjust by focusing on research about happiness. It is true that your mood is heavily influenced by whatever you choose to focus your thoughts on. My hopes are that you will think of this book as a mini spiritual escape or mind vacation every time you read one or more entries per day.

Like most of the books on happiness, Ive focused on promoting happiness from within. What makes this book unique is its bite-size information on a day to day basis. An empowering collection of uplifting thoughts, based on timeless wisdom and other resources, to sustain your spirit through each blessed day.

May you find inner-peace, relaxation and happiness as you journey through the pages of Think and Be Happy.

Warmest regards,

Shadonna

The joyfulness of a man prolongeth his days.

Proverbs 10: 2