We’ve been here, in the new year, for 10 days now. This afternoon, I had tea with a couple of dear friends, catching up in the new year. “Happy New Year!” said one friend cheerfully, as she approached the table where the two of us were sitting, waiting for her. As we took turn to hug each other and said Happy New Year, one blurted out the question, “How long are we going to greet people with a Happy New Year, do you think?” teasingly, of course. “Ooooh …?” the other friend was puzzled. “Sit down, Ladies,” I cut in, “You can greet people with a Happy New Year as long as you want, especially if it’s the first time you meet them in the new year. Be prepared with a good answer if they stare at you thinking that you may have lost your mind” I said smiling.

The three of us have been friends for years now, and we have our regular rendezvous over tea and coffee, then dwell on philosophical thoughts that get us deep into valuable conversations.  We always head home with a revelation, a different way of looking at things, at life.  This afternoon, it was no different.  A New Year’s greeting was the one that got us going.

Think about it.

Who says we can’t greet people and say Happy New Year, regardless what date it is in January?  Especially in January, because it’s the first month of the year.  There are still 11 months to go before the year changes.  It’s uncommon, for sure, but it is still alright. It’s even better if this seemingly off-track greeting results in a fun and light-hearted conversation with others; whether it’s a stranger, an acquaintance, or someone you already know.

How many of you say “how are you” when you meet people? Most probably all of you. What do you think the immediate answer to such question? Most probably – good, alright, ok, or something similar.  It is so automatic that most of us don’t even think about it, the words just jump out on their own.  Sometimes I wonder, why do we even say it if we aren’t even aware we say it, we don’t even look the person in the eye when we say it? I once greeted someone with how-are-you, and he responded with well-thank-you. Then he sneezed and blew his nose.  I guess he wasn’t that well after all.

We, humans, programmed by routine, go through the day with an automatic button switched to on behind our back. We go through the day like a toy robot. Our morning routine is almost the same, we take the same route to work, we do the same thing at work, go home, and repeat it all over again the next day. Five days a week.

Now, what if you greet someone with something different every day, to get one’s attention? Consider a few of these – “Happy New Day, what would you like to create today?”. Or,  “You look so good, I bet you’re about to create something great today.” You can come up with better and more creative things to say.  I trust you can.  And if you’re on the other side of this greeting, the one who is asked, be prepared with a creative answer that gets the asker’s attention.  My husband has a tendency to do this when asked by someone, “How are you?” – “Fantastic,” he says, “… but it’s getting better!”  At the least, he gets a chuckle (and that’s better than just a smile).  A chuckle means that the person is engaged, awoken, he/she is hit by something different.  He also tends to end a conversation with something similar.  For instance, we are about to leave a restaurant and the server says, “Thank you very much, have a good day.”  He usually turns around and says, “Only if you do.”  A chuckle will usually follow.

Aim to create a chuckle the next time you meet someone.  Go for it.  Plan it ahead.  Hey, it’s a new year, who says we should repeat what we’ve been doing in the past? Make over the old things, say them in a different way. Look at things from a different point of view, it’ll give you a different perspective. Let’s give it a chance, let’s change the way we look at things, and wait for a pleasant surprise as a result. After all, it’s a New Year!

#newyear #change #createachuckle #livingyourinspiredlife #ingemaskun