“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.”
(Dalai Lama)
Hi y’all, Kyle here! Happy Living is just over 2 years old, during which time we have dedicated ourselves to creating blog posts. I remember the excitement of our first post, and now we have over 200 of them in our archives. Since we launched, we have been thrilled to see so many new members join our Happy Living Community.
So, in honor of Happy Living’s founder, my dad, Matt Gersper, turning 55 tomorrow, I’ve selected excerpts from his interviews for you to get to know him even better. Matt founded Happy Living with the mission to help the health and wellbeing of the world, one person at a time and he writes to inspire others to believe that a better self is always possible – today, every day, for the rest of their lives.
So, Matt…
What did you want to become when you were a kid?
That’s an easy one. I wanted to become a professional football player. The first personal story I share in my book (Turning inspiration Into Action) shows how I used my Process to transform myself from a 5 foot two inches, one hundred pound high school football player (who wasn’t even good enough to be selected for his starting freshman team) into a hard-hitting strong safety good enough to be signed by the World Champion Los Angeles Raiders. It wasn’t an easy journey, but I learned so much about myself, and life, along the way.
Any advice you would like to give to your younger self?
Yes. The same advice I offer the reader at the end of my book: Make progress slowly but surely. Be super kind to yourself. Focus on the work you love, not the outcomes you want. Start small. Go easy but do not stop. The journey of a lifetime takes an entire lifetime. It’s taken your entire life to get to this point. It didn’t happen all at once, did it? Over all your years, it was the accumulation of little actions, daily decisions, your reactions to the events of life, and the passing of time that led you right to where you are at this moment. I know you want more from life and you can have more. You can have everything you desire in life. That’s what I believe. But you can’t have it all tomorrow. So be diligent and carefree at the same time… Enjoy the journey!
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you, what books would you bring?
Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life by Dr. Wayne Dyer
Goat Brothers by Larry Colton
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond
The River of Doubt by Candice Millard
What, according to you, is the hardest thing about writing?
That’s easy – having patience. Having patience during the writing process. Having patience during the editing process. Having patience during the selling process. And most importantly having patience once people start reading the blog post or the book. I want to know what they think, if I have moved them, if they found valuable insights that can help them in their life… and I want to know all of that immediately. My beloved wife Dani would tell you I am the least patient person on earth, but I like to think of my impatience as enthusiasm for moving forward!
Are you “there” where you wanted to be?
Yes, I am so happy, grateful and content with the life I have today. And no, I have so much more to do. I’ll explain my answer with two of my favorite quotes:
“All of you are perfect just as you are and you could use a little improvement.” (Shunryu Suzuki-roshi)
“Once you get where you want to be, you’re not there anymore.” (Unknown)
Please help me in wishing Matt the very happiest of birthdays… and many, many more. You can help grant his birthday wish by making a donation towards his big, bold goal of raising $28,300 for the Make-A-Wish Trailblaze Challenge. For Matt, it’s all about the kids. Click here to make a donation!
Image via Blake Richard Verdoorn| This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click and then purchase we will receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for reading & supporting Happy Living!