I often wonder why people seem reluctant to smile these days. It costs nothing to smile so come on people lets start looking a bit happier. This article is all about this and about having a more positive outlook on life which will bring positive results.

I am somebody who used to always think in a negative way, I have now managed to stop this and my life has improved no end. I now like to be around positive people, as these people tend to be more successful and happier. In my opinion there are too many people who are always moaning and groaning and are seemingly depressed.

Growing up I had many things to be negative about, I had a stutter, I have a bald patch, I was overweight and am also quite short for a male at five foot four. I was one of the ones who walked around in a depressed state and I used to feel sorry for myself. Even when I write about it now, I laugh about how stupid I used to be.

I realised early into my twenties that I needed to change my approach to life. I was quite fortunate in that I had a friend at the company I worked for, who was to prove an inspiration to me. His name was Stuart, and even though this may seem cruel, Stuart did not have a lot going for him. I won't go into details but lets just say even with the problems I felt I had, I was not jealous of him. I became quite good friends with Stuart and we would regularly have lunch together.

I would meet him in the canteen at 1pm and would be waiting in my gloomy state of mind, with my gloomy face, for him to arrive. Arrive he certianly did, always with a beaming smile on his face. This always amazed me as I could never understand what he had to be happy about. We would sit down and talk whilst eating our lunch and he never had a negative word to say. When he talked, he talked with passion, about his work and interests. One day it dawned on me, if Stuart (who from what I know of him, seemingly has nothing going for him) can always be positive, happy and smiling, why can't I?

This was the beginning of my new outlook on life. An era of being positive, appreciating what I have got and more than anything else, plenty of smiles. I now am happy with my weight, height, bald patch and am proud to say I have now overcome my stutter.

Steve Hill

Stephen Hill runs The How To Stop Stammering Centre In England. He offers stuttering therapy courses to help people who stutter to achieve fluency. Stuttering is also known in some countries as stammering.