You might think that your current streak of bad luck is an unfortunate coincidence, but the truth might be that your present state of unhappiness is not a pattern, but the direct result of living the life of a genuine prick
. Karma is basically the sum of all our actions, based on how we live our lives, how we treat others and the good or bad fortune we may eventually bring ourselves in time. When opportunity comes knocking, we usually have the option to either step up or play dead, and karma, both good and bad, is usually waiting in the distance. Before you go playing dead, there are always a few things worth considering and steps you can take to avoid a life of bad karma.
Quid Pro Quo
For those who aren’t familiar with the term, it’s a general you-scratch-my-back-I-scratch-yours way of returning a favor. Notice how in polite society it’s more or less frowned upon to make it known you’ve done a good deed for somebody, hence the need for a discrete reciprocation in return, unless you’re a let-it-be-known do-gooder.
When somebody goes out of their way to do something genuinely thoughtful, something they may not be expected to do, it’s only right that one good act of kindness deserves another. You don’t have to post your thoughtfulness to every social network that’ll have you, but you can surely avoid being anonymous if you can’t live without some recognition. In the end, we’re all just a bunch of braggers who want people to do things for us, so why not return the favor for once and build yourself up some brownie points for the afterlife.
Don’t Keep Score
Relationships are not things to be weighed, measured and counted on scorecards to keep track of who is a better person;
that stuff is just obvious. Instead of being the guy who keeps track of who owes whom how much money or who owes you big time favors, why not forget the past and continue on with your benevolence.
He who keeps score and is always looking for payback is going to give himself a lot of heartache in life, as many good deeds go unnoticed and unreciprocated. To avoid looking like a tight ass cheapskate who always wants an even score, just carry on doing good things. You may get tired of always being generous, and you shouldn’t allow yourself to be taken advantage of, but in the end people remember and appreciate these things more than they do a constant stream of emails with subject lines like, “Where’s My Money, Bitch!”
Be Mindful
It’s a simple thing to do, yet most people just don’t. Mindfulness is being aware of how you affect others and your ability to heighten or lessen their state. Put simply, if you’re a jerk to people, even if you don’t think you are being one, then they’ll be less likely to send you a Christmas card, However, if you’re empathetic and attentive to other people’s situations, if you really take a moment to give a shit about someone other than yourself, you might just get the meat and cheese basket instead.
For instance, if you’re making dinner reservations for you and some friends, and you’re mindful of the people around you, you’ll make reservations at a place everyone will like at a time when everyone can go. Any other prick will just take his vegetarian girlfriend to a Korean BBQ and watch her cringe while he stuffs his gullet. It’s not what you don’t, but it is what you do. Remember these words.
Learn Some Manners
There’s a reason why we have these people in our lives called mothers. There’s actually many reasons, but now that we can walk, talk and drink a 12-pack on our own, we may not feel we need their help as mu
ch anymore. But your mother was the chief officer in the law of manners, and that’s one thing nobody should outgrow.
A gentleman’s chivalry is something that will never go out of style, mostly because it’s difficult to find in the rambunctious world of a faux polite society. Opening car doors for ladies (sexy or not), carrying groceries for elderly strangers (also sexy or not), not smoking cigars in public, picking up your dog’s shit; these are all things we should be doing because our mothers expect it from us. And if you didn’t have a good mother, no excuses. Just be a man and learn some manners on your own. The only way chivalry will go out of style is if we let callousness win.
Take After Your Father
Your father, at some point in his life, was probably a very good man who had to make wise decisions, ones that didn’t always benefit him the most in the long run but were good for those he loved. That’s just part of what makes a regular guy into a family man. Take some pointers from your old man and see if you can’t apply those same principles to the people in your life, family or otherwise. We’re not saying you should get drunk and yell obscenities at your neighbors like your old man may have done from time to time, but you can do things for people in your life that act as a compromise between parties, as opposed to something that benefits you completely.
If your buddy finds you work, buy him a beer. If he helps you move, buy him a case. If he breaks up with your girlfriend for you because you’re too scared, give him a beard kiss on the cheek. And so on.
Follow Your Gut, Not Everyone Else
In the world of good karma and bad, it’s important to realize that the ways people act in society, although popular, are not always right. In fact, more often than not, they’re wrong but people do them because it’s either A) easier, or B) self-serving. If you know something is wrong in your gut, but you see everyone hanging a left down Easy Street, don’t veer off with all the sandbaggers and hypocrites of the world. Go with your gut. In the end, you might not come out on top, but at least you’ll sleep well at night. The people who think money, fame and power are the end-alls in life are the ones who have nothing but bad karma coming their way.
It won’t be long until you’re living the happy life, sipping on summer shandies on a quiet afternoon, reading the paper about the already-wealthy guy who wanted a little more money so he decided not to give Christmas bonuses to his employees and cheated on his taxes. Now he’s the butt of every “Karma is a bitch” joke, and the butt of choice for every dog pile in the slammer. Don’t let karma do that to you.
