Kate writes: a friend lent me The Good Life – What Makes a Life Worth Living? by Hugh Mackay (Macmillan, 2013, Sydney) while I was convalescing from big spinal surgery, and what a good read it proved to be!
On the choice of book title Mackay explains:
When I say ‘the good life’, I’m referring to a life that is characterised by goodness, a morally praiseworthy life, a life valuable in its impact on others, a life devoted to the common good.
Living by the Golden Rule
To help us lead this kind of life Mackay advocates living by what he calls The Golden Rule: that biblical message of ‘doing unto others that which we would have them do unto us’. In order to live by The Golden Rule he suggests we need the humility and courage to:
- Listen attentively
- Apologise sincerely, and
- Forgive generously.
To help us live by the Golden Rule Mackay recommends a simple set of questions to ask ourselves each day:
- What range of emotions did you experience today?
- Where did they spring from?
- What did each of them teach you about your journey through this day’s events?
Mackay stresses that the measure of a good life is how well we treat others, regardless, as it says on the back cover of the book, of how that makes us feel and of the sum of our security, wealth, status, postcode, career success or levels of happiness.
If you’d like some coaching support to help you live the very best life that you can, contact me at [email protected].
