Well, Neil Pasricha is the son of two Canadian immigrants of South Asian origin, and a 30 something guy who faced some rather big issues in life. His wife divorced him recently, despite him loving her very much, and his best friend committed suicide.
Instead of giving up and giving in, Neil chose to make a difference in the world by shining the spotlight on the simple little pleasures in life. In his view, there are just too many negative things in the news - polar ice caps meling, the US Elections, wars - and he felt that he had to do something about it.
In a recent TED talk (see below), Neil shares with us the secret 3 A's of being Awesome, which are:
1) Attitude - Having the right attitude to overcome adversities in life
2) Awareness - Being alive and alert to the little things that make life "as good as it gets"
3) Authenticity - Being truthful to oneself, and knowing what one truly wants
Do view the video below and see if you're as inspired as I am. :)
If you want more of the good stuff, check out Neil's wonderful blog 1000 Awesome Things, which won a Webby Award. Launched on 20 June 2008, it counts down to 1000 positive little things that can happen to anybody's life (its currently at #325).
Neil is also the author of a best selling book titled (you guessed it) "The Book of Awesome" which is currently hitting the best-selling charts on Amazon.
Some of you may ask why I'm doing this free pitch for the guy. Well, like him, I find that the world has placed too much emphasis on doom, sorrow and suffering. Pressing us down every moment of our lives, the heavy air of negativity stifles our existence.
Instead of moaning and groaning, why don't we take a leaf from his book/ post from his blog and concentrate on the fun little things that happen to us? Why don't we count our blessings and celebrate the joy of being alive? After all, being contented is a positive step towards Godliness.