How to become even more awesome

YOU’RE AWESOME: Living a Fulfilled Life, by Di Smith (with photographs by Terrence Mtola). Awesome SA Publishers, 2011. 131pp.

Reviewed by Paddy Kearney

The back cover of Di Smith’s You’re Awesome announces that the book is about overcoming adversity and embracing life. It is about love, compassion and friendship. It is about communities standing together and how through the philosophy of ubuntu…we can all lead happier and more fulfilling lives. It is a book for people who want to transform their own lives and influence the lives of others around them.

There are 52 chapters, one for each week of the year, but do not let that put you off, because none is longer than three pages and there are lots of bright and attractive photos by Terrence Mtola.

Smith urges the reader to work systematically through the whole book, analysing how each chapter could be applied to your own life, and then trying out these new ideas for a week before moving on to the next chapter.

There is much good advice in these 52 chapters, but I came away with four ideas that struck me as important.

The first is that, as in the title of one chapter, Forgiveness is the Key to Freedom, in which Smith quotes Nelson Mandela’s reply to Bill Clinton’s about why he invited his jailers to his inauguration.

I was angry. And I was a little afraid. After all I’ve not been free [for] so long. I realised that if I hated them after I got outside that gate, then they would still have me. And smiling, Mandela added: I wanted to be free and so I let go.

The second striking idea could be paraphrased, You become what you think, so if you want to change yourself, then the place to start is by continuously monitoring the way you think.

Part of this is to re-interpret every situation as a potential source of fascination rather than of frustration. It’s helpful to deal creatively with the unexpected, says Smith, looking at it as a challenge rather than gnashing your teeth with disappointment, anger and dissatisfaction because your plans have been derailed. Ephesians 4:26 is also very wise: Let not the sun go down on your wrath  probably a recipe for good sleep as well.

The third idea that I came away with relates to how one develops positive thought.

If you are going to change how you think, avoid getting into a rut. Find ways of shaking those neurons. If you get home feeling flat and tired, try dancing wildly to your favourite music for a few minutes and see what that will do to your mood. Be adventurous and take up a new hobby or learn a new skill. Fill your life with as much laughter as possible. Regular exercise and nutritious food can also do wonders.

And, finally, you will need a new way of relating to people, especially those you live or work with.

Start by believing that building relationships is as important as building projects, and (another Mandela tip), if you want the cooperation of people around you, be humble and make them feel important. What a splendid example Mr Mandela has given us of that approach to life.

As Archbishop Desmond Tutu says in the foreword: We all have choices. We can live a life of significance or move on from this world without having achieved our full potential. We are created to be so much more than we realise.

In fact, as Di Smith’s title tells us, we are awesome.